Baarish

पिघलता हुआ बादल, हवाओं पे तैरती ये बूँदें
जब जब इस ज़मीन को आकर छूती हैं
तो यूँ लगता है जैसे एक नज़्म मुकम्मल हो गयी।
यूँ लगता है के किसी अधूरी कविता को सुर मिल गए और एक गीत पूरा हुआ।
ये बादल, ये बूँदें और ये ज़मीन मिलकर एक साझे में मौसम के सारे रंग बिखेरती है।
यूँ लगता है के एक नज़्म मुकम्मल हो गयी, एक कविता गीत बनकर पूरी हो गयी।

देखो इन पंख पहने पलों को
बस उड़ते ही जा रहे हैं
बेपरवाह यूँ बढ़ते हैं जो
कुछ दास्तान भी पीछे छोड़े जा रहे हैं
एक पल को ये पल ठहरे तो
ज़रा मुर के देखें हम कहाँ जा रहे हैं
अब शायद बहना ही है ज़िन्दगी के साथ
बेवजह ही हवाओं से लरे जा रहे हैं
बीता हर कुछ सौंप के दो जहानों को
आज आसमान के परे हम चले जा रहे हैं.
            

" Yun Karna "

वक़्त आज तुम यूँ करना
थम जाना रुकना मत बढ़ना
दो पल चाहता था तुमसे
कुछ लम्हे भी बीते कल से
एक बार को  बस सुन लो कहना
ऐ वक़्त अज तुम यूँ करना
थम जाना रुकना मत बढ़ना।
कुछ दिन दोपहरें रखी थीं
एक शाम भी राहें तकती थी
वो शाम ज़रा घुल जाए रात में
बस रात अधूरी मत रखना
ऐ वक़्त आज तुम यूँ करना
थम जाना रुकना मत बढ़ना।

"Amen"

Here is something for you Bhaiya and Bhabhi :)

" Sab jahaanon se bhi zyaada aur is umra ke pare,

  behad ho itna ke behis ye badhe,

  har naaz ke kaabil sab armaanon ka haasil

  har katraa ho roohaani, ye rishta yun pale...

   Ye khwaahish kaaynaaton ki,ek bandish aasmaanon ki

   mosiqi yun bane har dhun aa jude,

   fir saaz yun mile jo ghazalon saa bahe

   har maqam ho rumani, ye rishta yun chale..." 

 

"Ishaqzaade"

After more than a month, I managed to watch a movie in theatre. I realised how badly I missed that awesome theatrical experience of watching a film right till the credits end. That 133 minutes of the movie "Ishaqzaade"passed in a blink. This whole idea of  watching a film in theatre always thrilled me right from my childhood days. Every corner of the screen attracts my equal attention through out the movie and I love that.
Straight to the movie, "Ishaqzaade" has a great packaging and a greater premise for the story to unfold. Absolutely no mincing of words here when it comes to exploring the dusty landscape of some town in Uttar Pradesh where hooliganism is the order of the day and the protagonists swear by the name of the raunchy dancer 'Chand' played to ease by Gauhar Khan in the movie. And more so, when you come to know that the first of the many fight sequences shown in the movie is because of this lady being in demand for her coveted performance in either of the rival camps. Still remarkable is the fact that the girl in the movie belonging to a muslim family is able to match her dance steps while 'Chand' is busy indulging other male members of the family to shake legs with her. So, thematically you understand by now that the film is bold and upright in its approach.
Boy sees the girl amid all the tension and is bowled over by the relentless charm and anger of the girl, and so is the audience. The girl in the movie, Parineeti Chopra is somebody to watch out for in future as she pitches in with a close to perfect performance. She has the expressions worth millions, every scene every frame you become her as you see. She reminds me of Kajol of yesteryear. Still early days but she has got what it takes to become a superstar. On the other hand, the boy played by 'Arjun Kapoor' also works but mainly due to the efforts of the makers. He is good but mainly relies on the exactness of the character written for him. He lacks that spark that would have taken the character to a different level. But fair enough, he has got good moves as a dancer, good body, on the whole a sound debut.
The twist in the movie is worth talking. I was shocked like hell watching it. But that infuses some amount of practicality in the movie and also that element of thrill that remains throughout with that occasional tension in the movie. But post interval you find it little hard to swallow and you feel for the girl as to how does she still fall for the guy. But love makes you do silly things and that's what 'Ishaqzaade' is all about.
A word for the soundtrack of the movie. It boasts of a fabulous background score, thanks to Ranjit Barot and Amit Trivedi continues his dream run as a music director. "Pareshaan" and "Ishaqzaade", stand out backed by some soothing lyrics.
On the whole a 'refreshing watch' is what Ishaqzaade could best be described as.

"Aks"

अरसों तक देखा किये सभी चेहरों को, 

ख़ुद को ढूँढता हूँ अब मिल जाऊं कहीं। 

आईना झूठा तो नहीं जहाँ मुझसा कोई दिखता है, 

अक्स है ये भी मगर, पर मैं तो नहीं।

परतें चढ़ गयीं हैं इस शीशे पर,

जो ये साफ़ कुछ कहता नहीं।

या इस सूरत ने ही मुखड़े पहने हैं,

खुद देखता तो हूँ पर मैं खुद दिखता नहीं।

अब ठहरा जो ये हाथ से आइना छूटा,

बिखर गया सब जो टुकड़ों में हिस्सों में था कहीं।

एक झलक को इस काँच में एक आस मिली,

समेट लूँ,अब चुन के जोड़ लूँ आप खुद को यहीं।

शर्मिन्दा हूँ जो छुपा के रखा था खुदी से खुद को,

एक एहसास है अब अपने होने का जो खोया था कहीं।

नज़रें अब खुद में भी झाँक सकती हैं,

अब आईना भी सच्चा है और वो अक्स भी झूठा नहीं। 

Ankahee

अनकही है एक हसरत जो जिए जा रहे हैं 

लगता है बस कोई ख्वाब बोये जा रहे हैं 

खबर भी नहीं है कोई सिरा मिलेगा या नहीं 

पर हाँ, ख्वाहिशों के धागे सीए जा रहे हैं 

बड़े अनोखे मिजाज़-ओ-अंदाज़ हैं 

सवाल खड़े हो जाते हैं हर मोड़ पर 

और कभी जवाबों की एक गली भी मिल जाती है 

एक सफ़र ही है जो बस चले जा रहे हैं 

शामों में भी खालीपन है कहीं 

ठहरा है कब से, ना जाने की ज़िद है इसे 

ढल ही जाएगी ये शाम भी किसी रोज़

इसी आस में हर दिन खोये जा रहे हैं

कभी ये प्यास भी पकेगी

जवाब खुद ही देंगे सब सवाल 

हर बात जो पहेली थी सुलझ जायेगी  

बस ये इम्तिहान है जो हम दिये जा रहे हैं 

कुछ बात है इसमें जो मजबूर करती है 

कहती है के खोयी हूँ मैं ढूंढ ले मुझे

आदत है हमारी भी जो सुनते हैं कहा इसका 

एक शौक अनकही है जो जिए जा रहे हैं 

" Shaam"

कुछ बात है इस शाम की 

जो ये सब कुछ नया कर गयी है 

जी रहे थे हम भी यूँ तो  

पर अब ये हमको ज़िंदा कर गयी है 

एक अरसे बाद लगता है धूप ढली है 

एक सुकून वाली छाँव फिर से खुली है

हवाओं ने भी रुख बदला है अपना 

मेरी राहों को फिर से रवानगी मिली है

घुल रहा है सब कुछ अब इस शाम के रंग में 

पा गए वो सब कुछ जैसे खोने के ढंग में 

बहना है बस अब खो जाना है खुद में 

दिन ये जैसे डूबा इस शाम के रंग में 

ये शाम भी अब सोने लगी है

अपनी शाख़ ये खोने लगी है

जिंदा होगी फिर से ये एक नए रंग में 

एक शाम फिर मिलेगी एक नए ढंग में   

  

"The Vivid Loner- A Reprise"

"For all the worst that happens, there is always the best in the making
For every mistake I do, there is always something for the learning
The lessons that may not be that easy to imbibe
But for the chosen ones, that's how you got to survive.

No matter how you live, it's important how you die
For the question you will ask is this who am I?
Life begets death and then you know why
For all the togetherness there is always a vivid loner alive.

I live, I miss, I resist but I persist and still I dare
For all I have won't always be there
I ponder I gaze and the truth stands bare
That the life, in all it's means has always been fair


Then there is always this pain that will mortify
It will drain you often but also does sanctify
In the pangs of remorse then I utter a sigh
At the behest of the millions, there will always be a vivid loner alive."

" Zindagi"

सौ चेहरे हैं तेरे और शायद सैकड़ों आयाम
पल में सुबह सी उभर के आती है
और यूँ ही ढल भी जाये जैसे एक खूबसूरत शाम .

मिल जाती है कभी नसीबों के नाम
बेवजह रूठी सी फिर छोड़ भी जाती है
क्या कहूं अब तुझे शायद ज़िन्दगी है तेरा नाम.

गैरों में मिलती फिर भी अपनों सी बनती
लम्हों से सजती पर सदियों में ढलती
एक हिस्सा उम्र का, या है ये उम्र ही तमाम

विरह की कल्पना या आलिंगन का गान
गीत ग़ज़ल कविता शायद इन सब से भी अनजान
क्या कहूं अब तुझे शायद ज़िन्दगी है तेरा नाम

जी गए यूँ तो सारे
कुछ अपने कुछ पराये कुछ बिना किसी सहारे
बस और कुछ नहीं तेरी आरजू के नाम

इब्तेदा तो ना देखी पर अब इन्तेहा से है काम
टुकड़ों को जोड़ेगी वो बिखरे जो हर तरफ

मौत से ही पूरी होगी तू, हाँ ज़िन्दगी है तेरा नाम

My first few days at my job.

Although this is an old piece, but worth sharing. I believe, rather I should say I know, experience is the only thing that enriches a person and am a proof of that. Getting my first job, being exposed to the whims and fancies of the corporate world and an unforgettable manager Dr. Apoorv Bajpai was nothing short of heck of an experience.It may sound a bit cliched, but I have expressed exactly what I was going through then. I have valued the finest of the things in my life, and this was obviously a big one. I have never let myself to be sitting back and elude things especially with respect to my sensitivity towards what is happening around. What surprises me, may not surprise many of us. But that's why am sharing this.

Learning for the lifetime

I am just 50 odd days young in this industry and this so called ruthless competitive milieu. Being a part of this organization was no less than entering a whole new world altogether. I was born here literally and as a matter of fact, the day I came here it was my birthday. Like each and every day after birth, I grew with each passing day. And as we are closing in towards the training sessions, I just want to reiterate my learning and my lessons. Although life never fails to offer you lessons, the times that just passed by offered all of us lessons of a lifetime.

Essentially, it’s the human nature to value those things most that are earned the harder way. I am no exception and I must say that the lessons learnt here were not through the easiest of the ways. The only easier part was that I didn’t have any preconceived notions. That helped me learn and grasp the things over the period. It all started from the subject matter that had to be learnt in the best possible way with a cent percent accuracy. In addition to this, what was there for the taking was the subtle aspects of this whole process of induction. All we do is no mere exercise or an activity, but there is much more to it. That was the core of all that was to be done further.

To start off, it was heck of learning at the end of the day. As I told earlier too, it was not easy. The very first day gave a glimpse of what it is going to be like in days to come. Our foundations were shaken in the very first test which meant there was a lot of hard work to be put in. It continued rigorously through the week at our first stay, and when suddenly we were feeling pressurised and felt bogged down, the first words of wisdom came. It was just before when we were supposed to go to head office. Then, it was a huge respite when we suddenly realised we had nothing to lose but everything to gain. In a way it was a pointer to the days to come where we were going to gain provided we stayed focussed and determined.

The bashings became the order of the day but that brought me close to myself as in a state of meditation where we are open to our inner self. We were exposed to our shortcomings, ways for improvisation were laid. We learnt to be tough and more than that we learnt to deliver even when the chips were down. That diligent spirit of fighting back hard was slowly building inside. We were literally shaken by the words of our guide at times, but all of that trickled down slowly as time passed by and we were stronger. Then we knew the importance of being thrown out of the comfort zone and how to prepare yourself when you are caught off guard. The most dejecting moments were those when I repeated a mistake and whenever our guide looked clueless at our mistakes. It looked as if so much of him was at stake. He was no less than a mirror to me, and that was when slowly the feeling of ownership started coming in. After that, it was not only about meeting his expectations but also standing before our own eyes.

Third phase of the training instilled in all of us what professionalism and maturity was all about. It was when we had our sessions with the seniors. The importance of learning was reinstated. Every moment was to be seized as an opportunity to learn and improve come what may. If at all there is one thing that assumes importance in one’s life, it is learning and only learning.

 All the events had gone by and everybody was back to their work and so were we. Personally, I could see a few changes in myself and in all the work I did. Now it was the turn to “Remember the Titans”. As a movie it was a class act altogether, still greater was the lesson. It was all about having fun and giving sweat and blood to anything that we did afterwards. Time and again, the message got clearer and louder. It was not just about surviving, but much more than that. It was about living and living it to the fullest, making every moment count. It was all about taking the criticisms and failures into the stride and moving along with head held high. Another very important aspect of the process was learning to get the objective of the activity concerned. To get the objective right, we had our real friends, the questions we needed to ask before setting out to a job.

 Attached to the objective was a still deeper purpose, the ultimate purpose of one’s existence, the bliss. It was like a practical to what I knew, I must say in theory and tried to inculcate. I always expressed gratitude to the being for having instilled in me the awareness and consciousness to live every moment to its fullest. Of course that included our all the daily activities. So what happened ultimately from that moment onwards was that every activity was a potential source of the utmost contentment. At least that is the motive of whatever I do from here.

Dr. Apoorv Bajpai, as a manager and professional guide kept pushing us in our endeavour. This doesn’t just end here at the work front, it goes a long way and beyond. Without any second thoughts to it I can say, whatever I could learn was courtesy Apoorv Sir. With his occasional outbursts on our mistakes that would send everybody to frenzy and an almost regular friendly demeanour along with his spontaneous comments all over, he has been the most difficult person to judge. I must confess this, even if we try to avoid it we end up being judgmental. But we failed badly and could never come to a conclusion. He looked the toughest of the persons around and at times the coolest buddy around. Along came another lesson for the lifetime, world is the most beautiful place to live only when you stop judging. And that’s when life is wonderful, a perfect blend of everything.

Still greater was the insight which prompted me to know that spontaneity is one aspect we need to understand. Apoorv Sir as ever was instrumental in this too, him actually being spot on with that spontaneity. But for that we again needed to be clear about the objective. An essential add-on to this point was of course the preparation and the rehearsals. We could perceive that fine thin line between preparedness and spontaneity. What we sought was striking a balance between the two. Not only here, I learnt that alchemy of balance with life which is the most important thing. What I got to do was set the record straight, live everything to its merit as it came, sans the presumptions and assumptions. What would follow eventually would be a calm body and a relaxed soul.

Our words should account for our actions. So, it’s time for actions to emerge out of these words.

“Learning that delves deep into soul and comes out as a deed or a work is absolutely unparalleled in terms of the contentment it generates.”

The Incomplete...

" The world that I Know
The faces they show
That has all but one.
The ballad of life
The melodies they reprise
They sing them all but one
But I seek them all
For the truth I recall
I got them all but one.

A journey rather new
But the quest pretty old
The path I shall trace
To the unison I behold
Though I know not much of it
It draws me and I give in
As the facts would have it
It chose me as I let myself in
Now that I start off and take a plunge
Let life take all of mine
And I lose all of it but one
The journey, the pursuit, the incomplete...

My Maiden Attempt in Sketching

My maiden attempt in sketching, FYI its me. Atleast that's what I set out to sketch :) It was a conscious effort to chhose my own image, because I dint want to spoil any body else's image and at the same time I wanted to share it too.

The vivid loner

"For every failed attempt, there is perseverance growing inside.
For every dream coming true, there are numerous sleepless nights.
For every drop of tear that is shed, there are some happy moments aside.
For every laugh that comes across, there are always some moistened eyes.
For every moment of solitude, there is a companions' delight.
For every moment of togetherness, there ia always a vivid loner alive"