Straight from the Heart

His smile displayed the happiness he must have felt in his heart! The big buck teeth, which were such a prominent figure on his face, broke through the cordon of his lower lips to express their gratitude. He extended his right hand towards me, grabbed the twenty crisp hundred rupee notes and instantly pocketed the money. Then, mumbling his gratitude towards me and reminding me to call on his services anytime, he walked away. Gerald Rozario is a peon in the office of a reputed steel company in Calcutta. My acquaintance with him had been during the days when I worked for this steel company. From there developed a bond that I have found difficult to break even after leaving the company and moving on to greener pastures. Gerald had a quality that is so rare in today’s world-he could make people smile at his own expense. His dumb looks, ridiculous pronounciations, his way of walking, everything had a comical characteristic that left people smiling when interacting with him. There has been ...

Everything seems like it was only yesterday. When did the colourful dreams turn to shades of grey? Yet time has flown past, silent and on the sly. In a wink, a year has quickly gone by. A few more patches of grey on the side-burn. The visage is rounder, possibly a little worn? Summer and winter pass by in quick succession. The year has gone by, leaving behind only emotion. Life has a new meaning, its back to days of struggle. From the smooth highway, its down to dribble and juggle. One keeps trying hard, lucky sometimes, unlucky most The year has gone by, one can only reminisce and silently boast. The heart is heavy, grudging steps drag on. On the lips no longer rests a melody of a song. Cursing misfortune, eagerly waiting to be back on track. The year has gone by, the required skills I still lack.

As the train pulled out of the station, A man stepped in to play on human emotion. He addressed the bogie’s passengers With deft words, he tried to generate desires. He was a hawker who hawked his ware, The bogie was the stage, he was the star. Come Rain or shine, Monday to Sunday He was there, without any need of a holiday. Pens of all colour stick out of his pocket. As he spoke, his words flew faster than a rocket. Sharpened by continuous delivery every day In credit of his pens, this is what he has to say! “Our pens are good, they are the best. Graduates with distinction, in the torture test! Good quality is the reason to our fame. Our pens can put the MNCs’ pens to shame." Ask him his product’s USP and he draws a blank. Marketing strategy is a word, he doesn’t understand. He doesn’t carry a laptop to clock the orders at hand. Nor is he aware of the image of his brand! My heart went out to the guy, hawking on the train. A salesman myself, I empathized with his pain. My efforts ...

Last saturday, I heard a Chilly seller trying to attract the attention of buyers by reciting this poem....Have modified a few lines but have tried to keep the melody unchanged. The bengali version is followed by an English translation. Probably that's the way to fight recession....take it head on, with a song! Aaha..Ki rong, Ki roop! Aare Dekhe ja, dekhe ja, dekhe jaa! Ei lonkay Raabon aache! Er jhaale te noyon kaande! Diye dekho Koi, maagur e, Jibhe kemon jol aashe! Taaka poisa bhebo naa re! Ei amrit kotha paabe! Aare niye ja..niye ja..niye jaa! The English Version Aaha…What colour, What beauty! Hey!! Come and see..come and see…come and see! This chilli ( lonka in Bengali) reminds of King Raavana. Its heat makes the eyes water. If u add it to the fish curries. U will see your mouth begin to water. Do not worry about money my friend. Where will u get a nectar such as this? Hey…come on…take it…take it..take it!

Years ago I had made trip to Lucknow, to attend one of my friend’s wedding. My friend had been born and brought up in Lucknow and anything and everything remotely connected to Luknow was, for him, straight out of heaven. Time and again, whenever he got fed up with eastern India’s food style, he would lament about the kebabs and the dum pukhts that is associated with this city of Nawabs! He also used to speak of a Chicken preparation called “Kaali Mirch Ka Murga”. Apparently the dish was supposed to be out of this world. When we went to Lucknow, we were very eager to try this dish out. To our amazement we found that this dish was very popular in whole of Lucknow and any hotel or restaurant that we went to, this dish was sure to appear on the menu card. Don’t know why but last Sunday I decided to try out this dish on my own, without taking a page out of the thousands of the recipe books. The idea was to try and see if I could create something unique and different that would be pleasing t...

While driving to office on the 1st day of July, my attention was caught by a beautiful radio jingle, which advocated people to have some sweets because it was the first day of the month. Immediately my mind went back in time, 30 years ago when I was a small boy. Those were the days of simple living and modest ambitions. My dad worked in a factory and we stayed in the factory quarters that made up the colony. The colony had 2 or 3 nationalised banks where the employees had their savings account. These banks were so different from the private/multinational banks that we are used to seeing today. These days, very few people visit banks in the cities/bigger towns to draw out money. The ATM machine has made life so much easier for everyone. You don’t need to depend on the bank’s convenience to take out money that is rightfully yours. Thanks to ATM machines one can withdraw money at one’s own convenience and depending on one’s own needs. Then there are also credit and debit cards for those e...

Here comes the rain again, Falling on my head in swift rapid motion. Filling hearts young and old with jubilation And giving rise to numerous emotions. Here comes the rain again, The wetness is welcome to all. Dust and dirt days now are things of past. The colourful umbrellas are out, at last! Here comes the rain again. The clouds loom over the high-rise. Like locks of a maiden’s hair, Imprisoning the love-stuck sun in its own lair. Here comes the rain again. The trees are washed and sparkling green. Wonder who makes those paper boats now, That was such bliss of our yester-years? 3rd July '09