Subah

roshni ko khauff hai
mil na jaaye phir kahin
khaab koi raat ka
subah ki aad me
----------------------------------

kya bataaye
kya dekha tha

thode, soone seene ke ghar pade the
thode bujhe se raahon par khade the

ujle ungliyon ki aanch se
mere dar pe saare mar gaye

roshni ko khauff hai
mil na jaaye phir kahin
rang bikhre saanjh ke
subah ki aad me
----------------------------------
kya bataaye
kya dekha tha

parchaiyaan pahanke nikalti dopahre
ummeedein ugalte nigalte woh chehre

neend khuli to dhoop udi
aankhon me andhiyaare bhar gaye

roshni ko khauff hai
mil na jaaye phir kahin
hisse toote neend ke
subah ki aad me
----------------------------------

Har raat ki kahaani

Waise khwahishon ko likhte padhte nahin
par ham hain ki kuch bhi samajhte nahin

--------------------------------------------

badi mehrbaan hoon
shab-e-tajaruba hoon
subah ko saba hoon

Dhoond le ishq meri zameen par

yahaan hoon wahaan hoon
hawaa hoon dhuaan hoon
har kiski duaa hoon

Chod de ishq meri zameen par

jaan baqsh doon, jee vaar doon
jaan kaat-ke sau baar doon

har saans ko parwaaz de doon?

kal khaali aasmaan bhar dengi
khwahishein

---------------------------------------------------

ud lo zara to peeche peeche mausam bhi aayenge
saayon se jhadkar kheenche se ham bhi aayenge

ek umr kya; hazaar doon
seene ki shikan sawaar doon

har saans ko parwaaz de doon?

kal khaali aasmaan bhar dengi
khwahishein

-----------------------------------------------

peshani pe ab raat rakh le, aankhon ke faasle bhar jaaye
labon ki har baat chakh le, khamoshiyaan dabke mar jaaye

nigaahon se sukoon udhaar doon
in aankhon se junoon utaar doon

har saans ko parwaaz de doon?

kal khaali aasmaan bhar dengi
khwahishein

------------------------------------------------

kal subah
ek chehra hoga, ek naam hoga
kahin thahra hua koi kaam hoga

kahaani hogi par baat nahin hogi
peshani pe thami si raat nahin hogi

par jab raat hogi
phir saansein udengi

aur khaali aasmaan bhar dengi
khwahishein

On My Own

I changed houses
I moved into a dream
with an angel
who wore
my favourite part of the day
all the time
Was it a cloud?
was it a shroud?

I went blind
the windows were all nailed
the hinges were all rusted
but deaf-mute caresses
do not leave
space to breathe
the drying dew
was there a cue?

I open my window today
to autumn leaves & noisy winds
to alien smells & hideous sights
I am scared
but I think I will find my way
I think I will make
my own favourite part of the day

---------------------------------

I found a map
& took the right turn
that wasn't there
but then, my angel,
he did not tell me
he would head straight
Should I hit a brake?
Was it a big mistake?

I see a street
the pavement
a crowd of broken stories
I reach out
for that hand
which is around no more
Am I free?
Should I flee?

I unhook my shadow today
I have been in the dark long enough
I can leap ahead blind-folded, unarmed
I am scared
but I think I will find my way
I think I will make
my own favourite part of the day

The Call

I waited, punching on the remote
staring at the screen
the flickering images making me no sense

I waited, flipping through the magazine
staring unseeingly at the same page
again & again

I waited, brushing my hair
every other few minutes

I just did not want to fall asleep

I made myself a cup of tea
strange, it took longer than it usually does
but shorter than I wanted it to take

I waited last night
I waited till late into the night
I waited till it was night no more

I waited for the call which never came
& now it is night again.

But I am sure -you will call tonight!!

De do na!!

A re-post! Had posted this last August 11th...
you may ask em why?
well,for now, make do with the knowledge that this is my tribute to human stupidity (my stupidity)
I think this is apt for what I currently think!
I hope you like it!

-----------------------------------------------------
mutthi bhar roshni kar do soone se sehar me
chutki bhar chandni bhar do beraham dopahar me

aadhi hi sahin labon ko muskaan de do
sooni zindagi ko thodi si jaan de do

ek sadi ki nahin ek ghadi hi sahin
do kadam aasmaan aaj hamko yahin
de dona
...............................................................

sooni aankhon me armaan chidak jao
thahre dil me tum aake dhadak jao

boond kaafi hai ab doob jayega dil
chahaton, boond banke tapak jao

hai raahi ko bhi raaste ki khabar
aye rasta, ab tum khud bhatak jao

chup se honthon ko do chaar alfaaz de do
kabse baithe hain, ab humko aawaaz de do

umr bhar ke safar ka iraada nahin
do ghadi do kadam waise zyada nahin
de dona
...................................................................
subah baat karke dhuaan chod jao
jalte aasamaan pe ruuii odh jao

ruaa sa aasmaan ruaansa aasmaan
baras jaaye to thoda sa tod jao

seedhi lakeeron pe chalta hain waqt
aage rasta phir yahin ko mod jao

bewaqt bevajah kabhi dastak to de do
saath mera kabhi agle pal tak to de do

khokhle khaab kabhi nazar se guzarte nahin
tum waqt deke aankhon me thaharte nahin
de dona
.....................................................

Vengeance of a loving heart

You locked me up
in your big dark house
I painted blue skies
on all your walls
Now every time
you enter your house
all you see is blue
all you see is clouds

You tied me down
to a starless night
I stretched my arms
& flew away with it
Now every time
you open your door
all you see is yellow
all you see is day

You closed your window
on my face
I pasted my smile
on your sill
now every time
you look out at the world
all you see is
my smile on a zillion lips

You hurled my song
on a cobblestone walk
i just went mute
& I still am
now every time
you take a step
all you hear is
my silence creaking under your feet

Now you crave a home
you crave that night
you crave my gift
that smiling song

how you wish you did not do
all that you did
how you wish
oh, how you wish!!

Sleep, Darkness, You & Me!!

This is an age-old Jugalbandi...! Thought this surely deserves a place here!
Thanks Archie!
& thanks Bling & Hobbes for occurring to Archie when she was writing this with me!!
Thanks me for an awesomely meaningless conversation! :D

Thanks to the Eco endterm tomorrow which is driving me to post insane stuff!! lolz!!

---------------------------------------------------------

sri : last night
sleep did not join me in bed.. neither did you!

arch: why did not that bitch sleep come?

sri : it likes sleeping with you...

arch: i am straight
i had darkness with me last night
he is nice....
he doesn't hurt me
but then when that ass hole light comes...
he runs away
i wonder why cant he stand her

sri: did he keep you awake?
did he try, too hard?
but then he never had colors to wear, never wanted them either...
maybe that is what keeps him away

arch: he wears colors for me.... he knows i love them.... he can't disappoint me....
he doesn't keep me awake...
he is happy with even watching me sleep
says he sleeps in my sleep even more peacefully...

sri : then why did he never come my way?
i am colorful too
and am always game for a pillow fight
then why was my bed empty but for 2 strands of hair?

arch: he is straight too!!!!

sri: send him home sometime...
maybe he can try me once
i was straight too not long ago
but then this - ain't bad at all!

arch: hmmmm will ask him....lets see what he says
hes adventurous but
then i have tlod him about you
he likes people who write weird stuff
and are as big idiots as me
but he is scared of sandu....
says she can be senti

sri : darkness is all i ever wanted
even before i knew he existed
he can do whatever he wants
after i fall asleep
sleep me and darkness will be quite a threesome

arch: like bling does when you are asleep....
he kisses my nose...thats you....
he is open to anything but i am afraid he loves being loved....
you love him so deeply
he will be affectionate to you
he is gentle
he is kind
but when he goes to his deep dark mode
i am afraid he falls for blood

sri : red darkness has never crept on my walls
just for once i want to see that creep
and check out how deep he is
& then i wouldn't seek anymore

arch: he makes you addictive
he makes your insides scream
he will erase you from the peace's map
he will make you see color in dark
he will make you crave dark in the light...

sri: i do see him all the time
each time i close my eyes
each time i pull down the blinds
each time i slide under the covers
don't ask me what we did the last time around
but then i don't know why
sleep does not visit me
with him around
am I too busy for her
she can make me see things
much worse than he ever did
every night in my dreams i see you i feel you

arch: she makes you see things you might want to see....
but he makes you see things you never want to see....
and beyond......
par the boundaries of what you can see what you want to see
and even what you don't want to see.....
and he will never leave me.. he will drag you for me

sri: sight is a handicap
i don't want it anymore
i like it the way i am
with him around
blind as love
and dead as a night
let him drag me let him drown me
let him... will he?

arch: he loves it..
he loves me..
if i say..
he will....
we have been together forever..
he cant disappoint me...
my first love he is... { fourth first that is}...

sri: just noticed - don't know if i should tell you
but he lives in my pajamas when they aren't down
yes, it is dark in there
when they are up n moving

arch: he hides so you don't get scared....
he has got many things to him...

sri: yes he wears and he wears me out
when he does all those unspeakable things to me
i can see what i want to and not see what i don't
when he is with me
which he seldom is

arch: he will be for you love him so much..
he wont deny you.. you adore him i can see...

sri : he is prose when he slides on my skin...
he is poetry when he dives right in
he is rhythm when he moves down me
he is the night for the rest of the world
but then he snores me the sounds of crickets
and his stubble pricks me at all the wrong places
no wonder sleep that lazy dame
never ever comes to bed with me
my bed is empty but 4 your memories n two strands of hair
neither is it dark nor can i sleep
take me away
take me away from me!!!

arch: thats not snores...
its the sneeze.....
when he screams world stops spinning....
and when he is pure passionate..
he will kiss your soul out of you...
he will take you away from you

sri : i cant wait i cant breathe
yes i am coming he is coming...
we are coming ..
and i can see she is coming too!
sleep my elusive bed-partner

arch: i will make sure she doesn't come near you and let you experience the exotic partner.

sri : pray let her! let her be let her see
let her cry, let her creep
pray let her be
pray let her, for me

arch: let her feel how it is when you don't get your beloved....
let her crave for you..
like you crave for me

sri : i crave to be rescued from salvation...
don't need oblivion yet
don't need bliss either
why let me away... why let me down
why let me out.. i will stay out forever or less
what happened to blue moon??

arch: blue moon is always burning seeing the dark play with me...
she comes...
see...
burn...
sometimes she comes full... sometimes she comes half... sometimes she dosnt come at all.....
lets us alone in the fantasy


sri: u evasive... conniving bitch.....

Raat bhi lambi laage!

ek khaab ke kone me ek syaah si raat mili
woh raat jo teri gali me utarke guzarti hai
kabhi raat ke peeche main bhi tahalne jo nikla karoon
woh lekar chalti hai kisi anjaan se saahil pe

geeli si mitti pe pairon ke nishaan tale
kuch narm si naazuk si khwahishein kinaaron pe

har din ki tarah samandar me bulbule bharti lahre
daudte huye aati aur saahil pe marti lahre
kya pata ke samandar me bikhri bhi kuch khwahish ho
aur raat me udte hue kuch khaab adhoore ho

dhoondha to bahut maine par aankhein tanha hi rahi
dhoondha to dekha maine paani khud pyaasa hai

phir samjha - lahron pe mohre to thaharte nahin
aur is sard se kohre me chehre bhi nahin milte

tu bhi to kabhi yunhi meri raat ke peeche nikal
tab jaanoge yun tanha lautna kya hota hai

ek khayaal ko odhe huye main jo kabhi mil jaaoon
dekhna tere chat par bhi koi saanjh pada hoga

---------------------------------------------------
raat bhi lambi laage
teri judaaiyon me
jaan ka tukda jaaye re

Gulzar

Another Christmas

Look at me
I am standing here on a busy street
waving & shouting out loud
But none ever looks at me

A Star for a fiver
A silver ball for a rupee
make your girl smile
make your child happy

please buy somethng from me
Sir
please buy somethng from me
Ma'am
please buy somethng from me

Everybdy's found a bzy road
I stand here, tired & wait
Won't somebdy sell me jus one smile?
I wanna live tomorrow again

Santa won't come behind
the park bench where I live
coz I don't have a fireplace
leave alone a chimney

So Bloody somebody
please buy somethng from me
Sir
please buy somethng from me
Ma'am
please buy somethng from me

Tommy wants a blue shirt
I don't want Tommy to wake up
to a torn & empty stocking

So
please buy somethng from me!!

Are Dinosaurs Extinct?

I like it when you whistle a 'hi'
I like it better when you just wink it at me!

I heard a dinosaur in a summery yellow day
Ah! I heard a dinosaur -
a T-rex dressed like a Sauropod

I still remember crumbs.
Thank God, I do!

Now, I dance to smiling afternoons
when swirling dusty winds play romance
on blazing empty roads

I heard a dinosaur in a raining silvery night
Ah! I heard a dinosaur
who now snorts down other ears

I still remember crumbs.
I wish I didn't!

I hate it when you bid 'good bye'
I hate it worse when you just leave without a word!!

Kill this space!

A night settling guy problems of a 6-year-old
A window overlooking a graveyard
A stupid rapid fire questionnaire
Nicole Kidman & Anna Kournikova

A debate - do we yell or do we not?
A talk about rages at the steering wheel
concocted stories - "barbie & barbaa"
Important clients , a delayed breakup

A game of pictionary with family
A round of booze , friends crashing over
A splurge of poetry which made me smile
A random stranger vs. the boss' daughter

Hours together, before we hit the sack
Are we still there? Are we coming back?

Are you sleeping? or am I dead?
Why is my smile blue? Yours is still red!!

Are we through? or is it just my head?
I donno what! Can you lemme out?

Not that alone, the world is all stone
But then each day leaves a little void
I still remember having read your say
A vacuum, small, is a vacuum after all!!!
-------------------------------------

Are dinosaurs extinct?

Rishtey

Purza purza raat jale
ab har dar bas khaak mila
shab bhar jalte saaye phoonke
phir bhi sahar naapaak mila

ghar se chale kisi aur dagar
phir usi afsaane pe pair pada
chub gayi wo shaam khaali si
wahi beraham ittefaaq mila

dil lagaakar dil khud kahta hai
'kismat to bahaana umda hai
kismat kos chalo, jo dil na mile'
zaalim dil ye chaalaak mila

band kamre me sab mausam to
bin dastak, aate jaate hain
kal hari thi peepal ki baahein
ab dekha soona shaakh mila

ziddi dil, toota sa, seene me
tanha kabse pada hai phir bhi
khwahish ugaane lagta hai
jab bhi aankh se aankh mila

purza purza raat jale
ab har dar bas khaak mila
har shab jalte saaye phoonke
phir bhi sahar naapaak mila

Click

A dark sky & a bright streak

A wet street & rushing people
A black umbrella & four feet

Click! there is a story


A dirty wall & graffiti

Caricatures & self-anointments
Love confessions & swear-words

Click! there is a story


A broken barbie & a garbage dump

A brown girl with a sack of grimy polythenes
A gleeful smile & a new-found fortune

Click! there is a story


Wild cities & unsung predators

Pug marks & blood trails
A carcass & a bunch of vultures

Click! there is a story


A red lane & colorful camouflages

Yellow taxis, men with stained teeth
Waxed skin, pink bangles & pasted pastels

Click! there is a story


A big dark rectangle
Rows of small lighted squares

Closed windows & hidden episodes

Click! there is a story

Click away
Dark moments with wings
need to be stored in frames-
memories!

Click all you see
pick all you can

You cannot click
muffled voices
stifled emotions

A flash cannot illuminate
everything;
can it?

Mowed

Now they do not write down thoughts
with toes
on the green lawn
listening to
the confluence of muffled syllables
in the air

The smell of mowed lawns
sits in the corridor

Now they do not watch the
shades of green
the lawn wears through each hour

'The night is a firefly
You cannot catch up with it
The day is a shadow
You cannot blow it away'

Now they do not wet their palms
when the skies rain down stars
stars which do not dry up
in warm thoughts

Now they do not notice
cringed noses
crumpled noises
'cause now they cannot

The smell of mowed lawns returns
every now & then
to the corridor

They sometimes wonder
on rainy noons
when feet are still or running -

would it smell as bad
if the sky were mowed?

Insaan bhi mausam hai

kis baat ki baat karoon, har baat kahin gum hai
jab baat karoon tumse, jazbaat kahin gum hai

dooja pehlu dekha, chand ka, tere sang, kabhi
tanha koshish kya karoon, ab raat kahin gum hai

baadal barsi thi kabhi, baatein ab barasti nahin
nazrein pooche hain kyun barsaat kahin gum hai

do lamhen lavz bhare, sadiyaan phir sannate
lab shikwe kare mujhse, hamjaat kahin gum hai

tere lahze ke naqshe par, woh shaqs mila hi nahin
bas beech ke purze mile, shuruaat kahin gum hai

hai kisiki meharbaani- tu woh to nahin jo tha
tu gum hai,aur sukoon tere saath kahin gum hai

kis baat ki baat karoon, har baat kahin gum hai
jab baat karoon tumse, jazbaat kahin gum hai

Punctuated Life

Punctuated noise
fills my day...
You had the silence I needed
But where can I find you?


You live in a place
filled with
a zillion fullstops


I can't come by
to see you giftwrap
all those for me

I can't go ahead
without any either
Too sad you wouldn't know


I am stuck at a comma...
Moments with wings
refusing to fly ahead


Cold feet
Cold shoulders
Hot heads
all around

I never find your face
bare of those fullstops

I wait at my comma,
watching it turn into a question mark!
I will soon be the one
with a zillion question marks.

...............................................................
Inspired by Gattu & his zillion fullstops!

Dedicated to those silent relationships beyond comprehension!
.............................................

Dead Conversations

Did you miss yourself ever
when you looked into
some eyes?

It happens.

Sometimes a droplet
is all it takes
to bring the dam down.

If only I knew!
If only I knew!

Words don't stay put in the air,
forever.
But yes, eyes deceive us
they show us marks which refuse to leave

I stand deceived too!

I believe often,
that I can go back-
to times with a better 'us'
or to times without an 'us'

Conversations die
when they find a face.

Should I add more to the grave
in a vain attempt
to bring them alive?
Or do I live on
with the dead?

If only I knew!
If only I knew!

If only I knew what!
If only I knew why!

If only!

Wasn't meant to be!

You left
me, a hint of that summer on the curtain cloud
when a waiting verse drove me home

You left
me, a thought of twilight prancing all around
when dinners and elephants were a quick affair

You left
me, a note of promise unconvincing now
about premature togetherness & rest of the world

You left
me, no reason to be mad at you
It was all, but my malediction

You left
me, a shadow, a night & a face
a shade darker than I had ever known

You left
me, everything & nothing at all,
when
you left!

You left?

Aankhon ka Shahar

meri aankhon me ek shahar hai
jiska naqsha tum roz badal dete ho

pichli raat kisi yaad ke bagal me
maine ek kamra banaya tha,
jisme kitne khayaal,
ajeeb-o-gareeb chehre lekar,
baith gaye the

phir tum aaye.

aajkal chehre to pahante nahin ho!
bas aawaazein pakadke aa jaate ho!!
kal bhi aise hi aaye the
aankhon me hawaa bankar...

aur saare chehre
aawaaraa pannon ki tarah
udne lage the aankhon me

na jaane kyun
meri aankhon ke shahar ka naqsha
tum roz badal dete ho

ab dekho,
na mujhe pichli raat wala kamra milta hai
na woh bikhre khayaalon ke panne milte hain

aise hi tevar rahe to
main kal se
in aankhon ki khidkiyaan
nahin kholoongi, haan!

Khat

har raat ik umr guzaarne ki aadat si hai

kaali raat khaali haath
to kabhi aati hi nahin
par jo maangti hoon, woh laati bhi nahin

kuch khote yaadein laati hain
kuch jhoote vaade karti hai
kuch poore tode jaati hain
kuch thode-aadhe bharti hai

ab tak us khumaar ka shumaar nahin kar paayi
na to har us khaab ka hisaab kar paayi kabhi

peeli lifaafon se chitthiyaan nikaalkar
baaton se roothe adhoore harf ghoorti hoon
kabhi lihaafon me leti hui main, baahar-
raaton se tooti kaari barf ghoorti hoon

kuch to hua hoga mujhe
do raatein char baatein nahin samjhi
ek sadi ke sannate samajh gayi

haan, baat thodi ajeeb hai-
tumhari nazrein bhi
kabhi aawaaz nahin karti thi
par baatein bahut karti thi

shayad tumne kisi khat me
gappi nazrein aur ek kaagaz bhar khamoshi
likh-kar bheja hoga
jo kabhi mere yahaan pahuncha hi nahin.

aise khayaal phoonke se nahin jaate
aur sukoon - sookha sa pada rahta hai

har raat yun ik umr guzaarne ki aadat si hai
shayad ab saari umr bas raat guzaarni padegi
------------------------------
each night, i live a lifetime...
all my life, it is, but, night!