a gust of wind brushes past
leaving in its wake a troubled heart
the wind never to be held
life more like the autmn leaves,
twirling in t wind , the momentary high
jostling together in a circular brace,
only to fall on the path
for some sprightly soul to walk past...
to leave a crushed leaf...
its momentary high , the lovely brace
all to come to a naught....
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Friday, May 26, 2006
trapped in a pose
the pose perfect,
affectation at its best,
somewhere on way , a search ensued..
lost in t haze was someone I knew…
my eyes strained, for t effort was in vain …
searching for t vestige of the mortal remains,
of a person ,cut above the rest…
the pose perfect,
affectation at its best,
the search stopped,
for I could not drop the pose ,to reclaim my lost self ..............
affectation at its best,
somewhere on way , a search ensued..
lost in t haze was someone I knew…
my eyes strained, for t effort was in vain …
searching for t vestige of the mortal remains,
of a person ,cut above the rest…
the pose perfect,
affectation at its best,
the search stopped,
for I could not drop the pose ,to reclaim my lost self ..............
Sunday, May 21, 2006
A good read - article by Gurucharan Das
A Metaphor of India
Raghav FM Mansoorpur l is a radio station which used to beam Bhojpuri and filmi songs, give community news and advice on all sorts of things, including AIDS and polio. It was started by Raghav Mahto, a 22-year-old mechanic in Mansoorpur, Bihar. Bored with running an electronics repair shop, Raghav stumbled one day on an innovative way to broadcast radio from his thatched roof shop by slinging a transmitter on a bamboo pole with a total investment of Rs 50. The do-it-yourself community station became an instant success. Raghav was happy and popular, besieged by requests from his fans to play their favourite songs. He earned Rs 2,000 a month — a nice return on his Rs 50 investment — fed his family of five and won the respect of villagers in the surrounding districts of Muzaffarpur, Vaishali and Saran within a 35 km radius of his radio station. "I air devotional songs at dawn and dusk," he told BBC, and this made him more popular with women than men. Two weeks ago, on March 27, his station was closed and his equipment seized because he broke two laws, he did not possess a licence and he gave news on FM radio. A formal police complaint has been lodged against him. Disappointed villagers are learning to live with silence. They could tune in to AIR's self-righteous programmes, but they want to hear the chat of their community — who has stolen whose cow, their MLA's broken promises, about the approaching Vaishali festival — and they want to hear it in their local dialect. And pray, what is wrong with thousands of Raghavs offering community broadcasting across the country? What if Raghav had started a newspaper? No problem. What if he had launched a TV news channel? No problem, again. But giving news on the radio is illegal, except by AIR.
Nothing quite dramatises the gap between the aspirations of the Indian people and the stifling bureaucratic Indian state than the long struggle waged by our people for freedom to broadcast over radio. Kicked and dragged, the government has reluctantly offered some crumbs. It allowed a few FM stations to broadcast after paying outrageous fees. Soon these stations were bankrupt and the government was forced to abolish fees and agreed to share revenues with the private stations. Since this has eased entry, 340 stations have now got licences and are about to begin. But they are still not allowed to give news. Raghav FM Mansoorpur l is the quintessential metaphor of a diverse and plural India. Mohandas Gandhi would have celebrated the idea of a radio listening community that might help to unite our caste ridden, factionalised villages. Community radio can also initiate development, empower women and Dalits, and advocate legislation from below. True, the government has reluctantly permitted colleges to run campus radio stations, but the licence process is so cumbersome — it requires approval from four ministries — that few have got going. The lesson from Raghav's story is that the state must de-license community radio based on an 'open spectrum' policy. Anyone should be able to start a station as long as they do not hog the airwaves. As for news on the radio, the only remedy is to challenge this contradiction in a court of law. Only a twisted babu will try to justify that one can deliver news in print and on TV but not on the radio in the world's largest democracy. gurcharandas@vsnl.com
Raghav FM Mansoorpur l is a radio station which used to beam Bhojpuri and filmi songs, give community news and advice on all sorts of things, including AIDS and polio. It was started by Raghav Mahto, a 22-year-old mechanic in Mansoorpur, Bihar. Bored with running an electronics repair shop, Raghav stumbled one day on an innovative way to broadcast radio from his thatched roof shop by slinging a transmitter on a bamboo pole with a total investment of Rs 50. The do-it-yourself community station became an instant success. Raghav was happy and popular, besieged by requests from his fans to play their favourite songs. He earned Rs 2,000 a month — a nice return on his Rs 50 investment — fed his family of five and won the respect of villagers in the surrounding districts of Muzaffarpur, Vaishali and Saran within a 35 km radius of his radio station. "I air devotional songs at dawn and dusk," he told BBC, and this made him more popular with women than men. Two weeks ago, on March 27, his station was closed and his equipment seized because he broke two laws, he did not possess a licence and he gave news on FM radio. A formal police complaint has been lodged against him. Disappointed villagers are learning to live with silence. They could tune in to AIR's self-righteous programmes, but they want to hear the chat of their community — who has stolen whose cow, their MLA's broken promises, about the approaching Vaishali festival — and they want to hear it in their local dialect. And pray, what is wrong with thousands of Raghavs offering community broadcasting across the country? What if Raghav had started a newspaper? No problem. What if he had launched a TV news channel? No problem, again. But giving news on the radio is illegal, except by AIR.
Nothing quite dramatises the gap between the aspirations of the Indian people and the stifling bureaucratic Indian state than the long struggle waged by our people for freedom to broadcast over radio. Kicked and dragged, the government has reluctantly offered some crumbs. It allowed a few FM stations to broadcast after paying outrageous fees. Soon these stations were bankrupt and the government was forced to abolish fees and agreed to share revenues with the private stations. Since this has eased entry, 340 stations have now got licences and are about to begin. But they are still not allowed to give news. Raghav FM Mansoorpur l is the quintessential metaphor of a diverse and plural India. Mohandas Gandhi would have celebrated the idea of a radio listening community that might help to unite our caste ridden, factionalised villages. Community radio can also initiate development, empower women and Dalits, and advocate legislation from below. True, the government has reluctantly permitted colleges to run campus radio stations, but the licence process is so cumbersome — it requires approval from four ministries — that few have got going. The lesson from Raghav's story is that the state must de-license community radio based on an 'open spectrum' policy. Anyone should be able to start a station as long as they do not hog the airwaves. As for news on the radio, the only remedy is to challenge this contradiction in a court of law. Only a twisted babu will try to justify that one can deliver news in print and on TV but not on the radio in the world's largest democracy. gurcharandas@vsnl.com
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
waiting for a caption shruthi...
deep within my heart, I cry…
uncertain about t day so dry…
for t one who loved and cared for me…
is no longer mine and let me be…
at t mercy of t cannibal, to devour me at his will…
mould of clay have I become…
for tomorrow, t dawn to come…
t potter at his artistic spree …
Will ruin me or let me free?
---- shruthi
uncertain about t day so dry…
for t one who loved and cared for me…
is no longer mine and let me be…
at t mercy of t cannibal, to devour me at his will…
mould of clay have I become…
for tomorrow, t dawn to come…
t potter at his artistic spree …
Will ruin me or let me free?
---- shruthi
Monday, May 15, 2006
nirvana on t battlefront....
he stood rooted to the ground…
t frame had freezed…
t frenzy clamoring for more…
white specks on the bloody ground…
macabre as it was…
t sword refused to be sheathed…
t moment of ecstasy was so near…
a dull throbbing pain…
a flicker of of smile to brace his quaint lips…
colors of every hue exploded in his head….
as t dart had found its mark….
to be lodged deep in his heart...
t frame had freezed…
t frenzy clamoring for more…
white specks on the bloody ground…
macabre as it was…
t sword refused to be sheathed…
t moment of ecstasy was so near…
a dull throbbing pain…
a flicker of of smile to brace his quaint lips…
colors of every hue exploded in his head….
as t dart had found its mark….
to be lodged deep in his heart...
Saturday, May 06, 2006
what if ?
Ever wondered (guess most of us do this every time thou !) what if some things never did happen ?...like you are late by 5 mins to t class…thx to t dumb cop who flagged u down for t routine drill.. What if he didn ? and thx to those 5 mins ur sweet heart sits next to this macho guy and all your dreams vanish in thin air !...well most of us have these kind of tales…don’t we ? ...and end up forever cursing and wishing….what if ???
…………curiously history has even more strange situations which would leave any avid follower of history saying…what if….
Well….t lady was into her seventh month…she looses her husband and her son…in misery she tries to kill herself and t baby in t womb…she survives t attempt…and so does Saddam Hussein….
T two armies are facing each other in t battle field…t king with the bigger army is confident of a victory…to his dismay…he sees 80,0000 of his soldiers join t ranks of his enemy…broken hearted he flees to the jungle..he fights till his death…but never to taste victory….
Rana sangha …loosing out to Babar….
A huge army of Indian soldiers outnumbering their captors by one is to ten are lead through t state of bihar…people …mind you..lakhs of them jeer at t captured soldiers….what if they had picked up a stone each and pelted a motley platoon of british soldiers? …after t battle of Buxar….(defining moment of t british raj!!!)
The general ….t most venerated military strategist ever…his artillery skills are spoken to this day…misguided by a local about the terrain…add to his misery, it rained t previous day….looses t battle …a victory would have changed t way t world looked forever…
Napolean at his nemesis ….waterloo…
Guess there are such momentous occasions in history were a slight change of path would have altered t history of generations…so… what if …. ?
…………curiously history has even more strange situations which would leave any avid follower of history saying…what if….
Well….t lady was into her seventh month…she looses her husband and her son…in misery she tries to kill herself and t baby in t womb…she survives t attempt…and so does Saddam Hussein….
T two armies are facing each other in t battle field…t king with the bigger army is confident of a victory…to his dismay…he sees 80,0000 of his soldiers join t ranks of his enemy…broken hearted he flees to the jungle..he fights till his death…but never to taste victory….
Rana sangha …loosing out to Babar….
A huge army of Indian soldiers outnumbering their captors by one is to ten are lead through t state of bihar…people …mind you..lakhs of them jeer at t captured soldiers….what if they had picked up a stone each and pelted a motley platoon of british soldiers? …after t battle of Buxar….(defining moment of t british raj!!!)
The general ….t most venerated military strategist ever…his artillery skills are spoken to this day…misguided by a local about the terrain…add to his misery, it rained t previous day….looses t battle …a victory would have changed t way t world looked forever…
Napolean at his nemesis ….waterloo…
Guess there are such momentous occasions in history were a slight change of path would have altered t history of generations…so… what if …. ?
Friday, May 05, 2006
Hollow....
a smile spreads across…
every nod to acknowledge my victory…
being extolled to skies, for my knowledge was vast….
my prowess acclaimed…
yet…a fear lurks deep within...
hear a voice calling out….
pull down t façade, for t truth to dawn…
an impostor that I am….
an impostor….
every nod to acknowledge my victory…
being extolled to skies, for my knowledge was vast….
my prowess acclaimed…
yet…a fear lurks deep within...
hear a voice calling out….
pull down t façade, for t truth to dawn…
an impostor that I am….
an impostor….
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Inexplicable....
" There's something I would like to understand.And I don't think anyone can explain it...There's your life.You begin it,feeling that it's something so precious and rare,so beautiful that it's like a sacred treasure.Now it's over,and it does't make any difference to anyone, and it isn't that they are indifferent, it's just that they don't know what it means,that treasure of mine, and there's some thing bout it that they should understand.I don't understand it myself,but there is something about it that should be understood by all of us.Only what is it? what ? "
We the living --- Ayn Rand
We the living --- Ayn Rand
Monday, May 01, 2006
musings...
slicing through the milky darkness...
a beam so intense...
an abyss set ablaze...
so ephermal was its presence...
darkness strikes back, tightening its firm embarace...
its trying hard to wipe the beam's every trace...
the fire in my heart burns bright...
for i have seen the LIGHT......
a beam so intense...
an abyss set ablaze...
so ephermal was its presence...
darkness strikes back, tightening its firm embarace...
its trying hard to wipe the beam's every trace...
the fire in my heart burns bright...
for i have seen the LIGHT......
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