An amateur's attempt towards poetry.....

Her shoes were dirty, her socks were torn
But they were definitely fine at the time she had worn

Now amidst a few stern faces, a forlorn expression clouded her eyes
She had then wished she had been home, playing with her sweet feline Nice

As she stood on the ground, her hands raised towards the sky,
A few sneering faces seemed to chide her to make her cry!

There she turned her head, she tossed her skirt
She gave one condescending stare, there with a smirk

For long, she stood outside the class
Thinking about what at all she had done to make the day so gross

To her, this was one long dreary day
To escape the boredom, was there any other way?

As her thoughts paced at the speed of a stallion,
There, did a little butterfly flutter towards her, lighting a smile on her lips, like one in a billion

The dazzling colors lit up her sad eyes and the flapping wings soothed her small ears
A feeling of delight descended on her and it felt as though after years

Then suddenly the school bell rang in the usual Tring Tring Tring
Now that the awful day had ended and so her elated heart leapt up to sing

The school was over and she was going home for the day
But now her mood was different as she was happy and gay 

Bird Idol ~ Movie Review

I watched this movie in the theater last Sunday with Aparna (my SIL). Before, I never was very keen on watching animated movies but then Appu had vouched for its sarcasm saying that the movie was a dollop of fun if I could read between the lines in the script. So we went for a morning show to watch the much awaited movie: Bird Idol.

Synopsis:

The movie as a work of animation is good and the story line is quite patent right from the start. The crux of the movie is about a Kingdom of Birds – The fictitious Shayadri kingdom that is ruled by an old eagle. However, pertaining to the king bird's old age, the kingdom is being run by a cruel vulture, Dhamki. And so as the story progresses, we learn that one of the deadliest sins to be committed under the tyranny of Dhamki is cross breed love that is aptly rewarded with death at the claws of the hungry looking diabolic vultures on the Annual Birds Day. So here, let me introduce the protagonists of the movie, Pancham and Pari! Both despite being from different breeds fall madly in love with one another and decide to get married much to the chagrin of Pari’s father. And so the love birds with the help of a Gujarati humming bird Jayesh fly away to the city, away from the tyrannical kingdom and lead a low profile life. Seasons change, time flies and amidst the cacophony of the city, Pancham and Pari have an adorable son Hummy growing up to be one handsome fellow, turning heads of the female crowd wherever he goes! Specially being a cross breed, his looks are enticing as he is gifted with the looks of his father and his mother's crest.

As the movie proceeds, it illustrates Hummy’s interest in music, which is not the typical bird music of twee-twee, cuckoo-cuckoo and wee-wee, but music that is man made. So he and his three friends bring a revolution in the bird music industry by blending human and bird music, forming a group known as the Air Guitars. Change always brings in some unwanted perils! And this revolution invites resentment from the judges of the Bird idol show (one of them is shown impersonating Bappi Lahiri). As the movie unfolds further, the judges plan to unravel the mystery behind the hat, that Hummy wears to hide his crest. And the news reaches Shayadri kingdom, where Dhamki comes to know about the whereabouts of his long lost wayward subjects.

So in the typical bollywood fashion, the hero-villain saga starts! The movie however ends on a happy note with the old king eagle waking up to life after hearing the Air Guitars play their indigenous music and Dhamki succumbing to the consequence of his despotism which is actually the awakening of the subjects of the Shayadri kingdom to live freely in harmony. The Air Guitars set an example for creating a revolution in the mundane thought process of their society. The credits are set rolling as the bird kingdom welcomes the change with an open mind, in their society of repression.

Review:

This animation movie will be perceived in different ways by audience. For kids, being an animation movie, it is a candid script with a good mix of humor, romance and action. The grownups however may have found it a little mind-numbing movie as the regular bollywood content was portrayed using birds. Teen crowd may have declared it drab! But if one understands the depth of this movie's script, volumes of human psychology clouding our human society are delivered lucidly.

A few instances of our satire ridden society are as listed below:

• The inter breed love of Pari and Pancham renders the inter caste system of our very own society. Even to this date in most parts of our country, this concept itself is a taboo.
• The feelings of a young male and a female (Hummy and Surili) are portrayed candidly. The complexity of a female's emotions when it comes to the feelings towards the opposite sex and her simplicity in hiding those feelings is blended perfectly with the inborn ignorance of a male who fails to sense the sensitivity of the female he loves and confuses his feelings with friendship.
• The TV show hosting a series – ‘Balika Bird Who?’ viewed by Hummy’s mother Pari regularly, hints subtly at the dominance of television serials over Indian female crowd.
• The main showstopper for cynicism at its best is the Bird Idol show which actually exposes the reality shows of our Indian entertainment. The incompetence of judges who concentrate more on their position in the industry rather than genuinely picking up fresh talents, the non acceptance of a change/revolution in any industry for that matter the emphasis made on appearance rather than on talent is captured finely. The illustration of this concept is further enhanced with a comic touch where one of the judges was actually the bird version of Bappi Lahiri speaking in a Bong tone and loaded more with jewelery and less with talent.
• And last but not the least, the regular bollywood movie content is exemplified further with the baddies capturing the hero’s family and the hero and his troupe flying off to fight the villain – Dhamki.

To understand and feel the nuances of our one tracked mindset of our society, this movie is a must watch!

The conversation..... ~ Man questions, He answers

The long arms rose towards the sky,
The dreary eyes flickered sensing the unseen force, why?
As the tears trickled down,
So did a prayer escape his cracked lips.....

Oh Lord,
If you gave us hunger, why is there never enough food on the table?
If you gave us thirst, why is there not enough water to quench the parched throats?
If you gave us strong arms and legs, why is there not enough employment?
If you gave us the conscience to decide the good and the evil, where did the respect for it disappear?
If you gave us the life to live, where has the verve to survive gone?

And He replied with the utmost wisdom and a serene smile,

I gave you fertile lands and forests, but you misused it by increasing your possessions which were more desired than needed…..
I gave you deep blue waters in the form of ocean, seas, rivers and lakes, but you polluted them too, killing all the innocent life whose survival revolved around water…..
I gave you strong arms and legs to work hard towards creating goodwill, but you used them to satisfy only your whims and fancies.....
I gave you the sixth sense as a form of myself, which I gave to no other creation of mine, but you ignored my voice and continued in ways of vice.....
I gave you the most precious entity called life, but you killed your soul, corrupted your moral, abused your body and nature around and finally questioned my existence.....

Child, What you give, you shall get...As you sow, so shall you reap.....After all Life starts from where it ends. It always comes in a full circle.....

The woman on the beach.....

The long lithe legs strode serenely making light imprints of a pair of shapely foot on the loose porous sand. The slender hands clasped together forming a fist like earth; The burgundy coloured curls danced over her shoulders with each pace she put forth and the dark brown eyes meandered towards the beautiful horizon as the milky white waves splashed the brackish sea water athwart her. Then all of a sudden, the figure just halted. The Sun was hitting the bed with a deep ginger colour settling on the mammoth sky. With the time, the fluffy cumulus, now fully painted with a galore of orange and yellow, tinged with an azure on its lining, seemed to grow thicker with the onset of dusk. They seemed to cast their dazzling image on the deep blue waters which made the sea look even more majestic. The sharp nose twitched as another wave hit the form harder than before. The lips moved slightly as if to mouthe something but stopped for some reason. It appeared to her as if the God of Light were bidding a good day. Abruptly, she walked towards the sea with her arms outstretched as if embracing the horizon. As she treaded, images of every phase of her fifty year old life flooded back to her: Her childhood, her adolescence, her adulthood, her professional life, her marriage, her motherhood, her personal life which centred around her family and friends and now this moment which she was currently living. Her life had come in full circle with its shares of happiness and miseries. Now as she reckoned the most unforgettable moments of her life, a drop of tear trickled down her cheek and fell into the waters below. It was as if the whirlwind of emotions in her was being patiently perceived by the giant force of the nature on which she stood.

The sea had always been an enigma to her. The dark waters captivated her as much as they terrified her. To her, the sea was a yet to be unearthed mystery, an inexplicable element, a ray of hope when all the doors of goodwill closed, a guide who addressed solutions to the inevitable Pandora boxes that were the speed breakers in a journey called LIFE. It had many a times given clues to her unanswered queries during the roller coaster moments that had at a time defied her very existence. Yet, she could not reach out to the unseen unfathomable force that had been guiding her so far, despite having felt it for a little time when she had craved for it, needed it desperately. And now she wanted to meet it, embrace it forever, hold it close and never let it go. There was an impulsive surge in her to reunite with the force from where she was born. Then suddenly a huge wave lashed out at her shoving her on the shore. There she was, lying on the sand as one defeated mortal, who had no other choice but to march back on her verve to live. But she knew she would meet the omnipresence some day. Only that it was just not her time.

To be continued.....

Welcoming a new life..... ~ Tribute to motherhood

The pain had commenced. The muscles inside her body convulsed as a searing pain tore through her body. It felt as though every crevice of her body was crying out in agony. Small sweat buds appeared on her forehead and the twinge only enhanced further to the next level. Breathing became heavy. A few anxious faces, filled with compassion, anxiety and apprehension, hovered over her. Her eyes were too blurred to notice the aura around her though she felt it absolutely, completely in every tissue of her body. And from then onwards, everything seemed to go in slow motion. It was as if the time had stopped, although her feelings at that moment were just inexorable. Various images filled with splatter of colors splashed in front of her eyes. What followed was a pain of the highest order which left her breathless and senseless. The lady on the other end could see a gaunt red film what appeared to be a soft tissue with veins visible underneath. A thin smile pooled with excitement and apprehension appeared across the lady's lips. And now she forced the already exhausted semiconscious girl on the bed to apply all her strength to the progression she was undergoing. As the pain soared to the limit, the girl let out one last cry of utmost pain and anguish. Suddenly what came as an upshot was a small bundle of soft pink translucent flesh covered with blood and tissue that was followed by a splash of amniotic water.....

A new life had been born. As the life struggled out, it let out an amorous cry citing everybody of its existence. The tired girl on the bed looked at her new born: The soft skin that felt like rose petals, the miniature black eyes that resembled black olives, a round curved nose that made the cheeks peek out, that pout of pink lips which just opened to leave out a small squeal, the soft black curly hair like that of a doll, the tiny hands curled into a fist showing an undeterred determination to fight the world and the tiny legs curled together in a fetal position just waiting to be freed so that they could walk in the world made by God!

This was what they called God's creation, the girl thought. And as she smiled, her lips mouthed a prayer to the Almighty and a poignant feeling brushed her like a breeze and kissed her forehead! And then she fell back on the bed, drowned in fatigue and sinking into a deep slumber of happiness and gratification. Amen...!!

A piece of mind in words!!

I am not so freaked out on social issues but at times, I wonder, is dealing with social issues and being proactive so difficult a task? Now social evils keep happening in every nook and corner of the world (coz, i know there are nations where things take to a murkier side as far as females are concerned), but what I cannot understand is why the number of thefts/dacoity/murders/rape/assault/molestation cases have been on a steady rise ever since the nineties. Disturbing cases of rape and murder of females in corporate has left behind a dread that is spreading like a plague in an otherwise peaceful city like Pune. Anyone would think twice before venturing out when it is so apparent that criminals with a hideous record are out there to hunt down the innocents. So who are to blame for such fiascos? Or can these blames be related to something like the butterfly effect? Like in the case of the 25 year old who was raped in broad day light in a moving car that had earlier given her lift till home, only! if only if the gal had taken a rick/pmt/shared rick to travel, only if she had an escort, only if she was intelligent enough not to trust the rogues, only if the police had netted down the criminals long back!! The list of 'only's will never end! In the reel side of the Butterfly effect, it showed people travelling back in time to resurrect the bygone events. Now since 'only if' is nothing but a misnomer, it is not possible to do the same in real life. Precautions need to be taken when there is no cure to a rotting moral fibre of our society.

It felt strange to read how the lady got into the car that did not even remotely bear a gentleman’s look. They say –Ignorance is bliss..... Here it turned out to be a curse!!

Now, coming to the crux of my point, has our law system become so loose, so sluggish, so naked and so blind that it has been indifferent towards people who have had a conspicuous criminal record? I wonder what kind of a police force do we have? Whom are they protecting from and from what? Both the victims and the predators are out. And the police like in reel life, arrive only after the debacle. I came across another article in the newspaper, where some citizens were attacked by some hired goons and the police arrived 4 hours post the panic call. Last but not the least, what kind of punishment would the constitution of our country suggest for these criminals? It strongly believes that even if a criminal escapes, an innocent should not be punished. Here the first half of the statement has been taken care of, but the second half of the statement seems to have disappeared into a thin mist of oblivion! It is obvious that our rules are stringent only as per convenience. Even if criminals are caught, they somehow, get scott free through loop holes of our law.

And coming to roots of our society, there is no end to its demonic side where females are treated with contempt, as some helpless hapless creatures who cannot defend their self. At times, I wonder is that why the old concept of ‘Dehleez ke paar’ was a phrase of substance? Only the perspective of ‘Dehleez’ has broadened its sphere now. I am not getting too conventional about women’s revolution since years. But as they say, ‘choora kharbhuje par gire, ya kharbooja choore par, kat ta to kharbhuja hi hai aakhir mein!’, the statement somehow even today holds true for women. Not just here, even across the globe, females who undergo various traumatic phases in their life are always the victims cum scapegoats for all the blame game that takes place over their distress.

But then ranting is not the right thing to do..... there are a few things that females of today need to take care of:

• Acting Bold in a Stupid Situation makes you more stupid. If at all, females are confident of venturing into unknown pockets of the city all by themselves, they should have a back up plan of tackling such issues, like carrying some pepper mint spray or a packet of chilli powder or must be good with martial arts!
• Females are supposed to be vigilant and proactive! The slightest hint of any different behaviour from people around must incite her to become more watchful. This is no hero’s world! No superman or Spiderman is going to come and rescue his Lois or Mary from the clutches of blood thirsty creatures roaming around freely. High time, turning a blind eye to the atrocities against women!
• And the last thing, working females don’t have to be workaholics. As the clock strikes showing onset of dusk, she needs to speed back home! This statement is specially applicable for women in IT industry. A female’s security is more valuable than the deliverable a client demands! And most important of all, more than anyone, the female herself is supposed to understand that her dignity is the most important and priceless asset gifted by nature which should not be taken for granted!

And coming to the laws of our country, criminals of all kind need to get the taste of the real hell! People who commit crimes must be made to ride through their own crimes once, to understand the meaning of agony felt by the victims! Rapists, molesters and sexual predators must be put through an expedition of their own horrendous acts to learn the meaning of the word: Respect and Self respect! Wish there were more people like Kiran Bedi who could drill sense into the senseless youth of today. At least make a few people tread into the right way of living! The world has been designed by the nature in such a way, where the good and the evil are supposed to co exist. And nature’s fury comes into play when the balance is disturbed. Wish, our society start taking social issues seriously!! Period.