Saturday, April 24, 2010

Pink Words.

Santanu stood still. The pavement was fluttering in the last vapours suckled by the Sun God...it was mid may and Kolkata was blistering. It was 12PM sharp, Time for the pavement dwellers of Sudder Street to cramp underneath the shadows of the Indian Museum. Santanu stood still infront of JONG's! The heat was extreme, with the cars diverting either up the Park Street flyover or moves down the JL Nehru road towards the Park Street connector. Even a few stray dogs wondered - tongue hung out - "How can this fellow, dressed well but drenched, fair but tanned in the sun...stand in this immense heat?"

Santanu. 
Age: 29. 
Profession: Teacher. 
Resident of Kolkata.
He was 5'6", weighed a mere 61Kgs, fair with brown iris and hair, which was distinctly well combed! Santanu had great patience for he knew that the fruit that patience bears is the sweetest!!!

And his fruit came, 1 hour late though...An Apple! She was clad in a red saree, something Santanu always craved to look her in but never got an opportunity at all. The locks swayed in the warm breeze that hurled into her face, thanks to the passing traffic. Each car passing by made her look sweeter, beautiful and she touched her locks, that swayed disobediently from her left ears to her nose and with intelligent sweep of her right fingers she made herself grow more awesome in front of Santanu.

Santanu and Juhi were mates since the days of high school. It was the same old story, as featured in a good-to-see family Bollywood movie, with the good guy never ever speaking his feelings to the extrovert girl: scenes where the music composure get undue advantage for the sober music. Santanu never told Juhi that he liked her . God never gives a second chance in these matters...but our Santanu was lucky. This dude got an ample of three years, during his graduation when both of them were classmates, but the words kept locked between his lips...

"Today, I will tell her something...atleast", thought the lucky dude who was getting a third opportunity. The flashback made Juhi take some more steps towards Santanu and when he looked at her- her nonchalant eyes spoke deep into Santanu's ears...

Santanu had been into a relationship, intimate and pure..or so he thought. The girl made a run for a better husband who was an executive in a MNC..leaving Santanu behinf with bad tastes. He was re-newed for over two years when Juhi pinged him one fine afternoon, January 2010. The first lines were: "Santanu..are you there?"

The Yahoo messenger along with the ID Juhipriya was there in the log, since Santanu was in school...but for the past four years, i.e after graduation, that ID remained invisible and inactive for SantanuRoXX.

-"Yes I am online...how are you?"
-"Its being a long time..."

Somebody shook his hands... he was still standing infront of JING's. Juhi was perspiring profusely, when Santanu said..."Sorry, are we standing here long?"
Juhi nodded her head. The tainted brown glasses fit perfectly around the contours of her nose and cheeks. Her ruby ear-ring dazzled, mesmerizing Santanu. That smell was same, her voice was same...

"Lets go to Hobby Center"

They walked in silence... No one can ever say, without knowing that these two have been knowing each other for over 9 years, with an intermediate break of 4 lost years...and they have been incessantly talking over the phone for the past 3 months or so...

The silence loomed heavy over the Duet of Love sundae... The mass was eaten cold...and then after the cups were empty, Juhi looked up and smiled... "are we here to each the sundae?" She touched Santanu's hands. The water that drained down the throat of the good guy, now started to well within his lower eye lids. The touch had such a warmth that it made him feel that his conception of girls running behind fat purse was wrong. His emotions for Juni was still there, which he thought was a fluke and infatuation. The hands moved upwards and grasped his elbow. Juhi uttered:"What happened?"

"Nothing...", Santanu said. That dumb fellow still didn't wish to talk.... will the third opportunity be wasted?

The girl, stood up and rubbed the tear or two with her handkerchief. She also had lost all fate on relationship, but this guy was her friend, where she now feels the best she ever had. Her beauty have always played tricks with her but not this time... she had known him for years... her belief let her fingers go down deep into Santanu's near receding hairline... Its all that the students and their parents can gift you these days!

He stood up. His right shoulder rubbed against Juhi's earlobe. The touch was hard for Juhi compared to Santanu, but it seemed that Santanu felt it more than Juhi. Caring, warm, lovable...he held the lobe withing his fingers and his eyes asked in the most tender manner: are you hurt? Its a frequency that was meant for Juhi only and she smiled away, affirming No!

Santanu made his voice clear: "Should we go some place else?"
"Yes, thats a good idea..."

They called a cab and decided to go to Princep Ghat. Its Taxi that the gatekeeper of Hobby Center heard, but there was again that silence.... The cab sped past the busy crossing, leaving a trail of the carbonaeceous smoke to wherever it halted or moved to.

Both of them had one thing to say...and yet both feared the same. A time came when both have had given up the hope of relationship...and then a time came when each other tried to cling back into the main streams of life... It was easy for the lady, who never had a feeling for the gentleman before...but for Santanu, it wasn't. One day, he had given up the hope to get the lady...pinned on his hope on another, only to be broken. To fall back on her, wasn't easy.

The car turned left. The evening sun was setting fast, throwing His Red Radiance on the her lips...he who cant watch it, better practise reading Sydney Sheldon... but Santanu, who was timid for his previous 5years to say anything to her, gathered the boldness of thousand tigers and touched her hands... He pulled her towards her, the glow of the sun shifted to the glittering ear rings. . Juhi stared at this mad who was entangling her shoulders, [the Light was RED], the eyes smiled [......AMBER]. Santanu felt her smell...stronger than the perfume... [....GREEN!!!!]

The cab sped past towards its destination, without the smoke trail behind......


Wednesday, April 21, 2010

A Date with Eden.

This date report is due of over three days. I went to the place, a place, where cricketers believe that the game of cricket, which is learnt everyday, remains incomplete unless you play in front and amidst the capacity crowd at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. The so called Mecca of Cricket after Lords and equivalent second to MCG, Australia for the great matches that took place here.

Eden Gardens is the second largest cricket ground in the world, with MCG standing at the top and amongst the in-numerable feats that have taken place here have both tarnished as well as uplifted the name and quality of the game here. To have a glimpse of the elite history of the grounds, let me put forward the following notes. To have being part of the crowd for the 8th time is more than exciting!

To have a note of the bad times, the Eden crowd had made it possible to brick a bat the SriLankan team, in 1996 World Cup, when India went down losing. The match was given to SL by default. The first time in the history. The crowd problem took place in Pakistan India Asia cup semis in 2000 when the test match was finally concluded infront of empty stands!

But for India, the ground is a blessing for more reasons. Be it stopping of the band wagon of the Australian test wins or that of the South Africans, it was stalled here at Edens. It is the ground where the feat (third time) of winning a test after Follow On was achieved by Ganguly and mates in 2001, against Australia, which happened to be the first ever time in this new millenia!

The Mexican Wave, whose video I have captured in the recent concluded IPL3 match of KKr against RR is provided below. This time, I visited after a lonf 3 years! A place that can never be forgotten, and a place where watching cricket is more fun compared that of at home! Enjoy the VDO:



Thursday, April 15, 2010

Honest Characters...

The Characters over here are not out of any movies...nor of life...but the alphabets that we computer freaks and good for nothing bloggers normally point to.

But, like all other days, where the characters spoke nonsense or sense in a mixed concoction, it will only speak the truth today...no mixture.

For the past few months, I would not say its years also, I have found that these characters are not shaping something that is worthy of a reading. Just keep the traffic on with some dumb key words, I wrote things. The blog was started with a vision that would put forward my mind to others...the faces known or unknown! Today, the title seems more correct literary than the pun which I intended to make it carry! Why is this happening? I have not lost interest in blogging nor am I too tired to do so!!! Then what is that honest confession:

I have lost the muse and the mule. The Muse made things spicy and the Mule made the muse running behind. The concoction was worthy [and did drew some comments along!] I don't know whether this new year [by the way its Bengali New Year, so Subho NabaBarsho!], I can turn on a new leaf... and make the blog interesting!

One thing I can promise all is that I will be visiting Eden Gardens after a long 3 years, the last one being in 2007, but that day the Srilanka India match was washed off! So that literally makes that I would be witnessing  a legitimate match after 4 years, the last of such an incident was Day 3 @ Edens, of the Test between India and South Africa in 2006! I will be posting the IPL3 Match experience between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals, along with the Videos.

But before i go, I would like to inform many of the readers that atlast my voice, like other's was heard by Presidency College as they established the statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, the great freedom fughter this April. NSCB was expelled from the college for his movement against a British Proffessor, when he joined the Scottish Church College to complete his studies! I went to college and felt happy that at last our voices to do justice to such a great man came frorefront! Here is the Pic:












Copyright: Somnath Paul. April 2010.

Friday, April 09, 2010

Scoop...

The news scoop for most of the television new jerks, since yesterday, is the firing and killing of the CRPF jawans in the dense jungle of Chattisghar, the nearby state of West Bengal.

With fire boiling across the heart of India, the latest sensational news overwhelmed the Sania Mirza and Shoaib Mallik's marriage that has a few scandals to back up!!!

Another scoop for the vernacular channels in Bengal was the lack lustre power supply by the power plants from the DVC and adjacent areas of Kolkata, leading to frequent powercuts!

Today, I thought to give some time into these scoops! For what greater purpose are they for? Look back some thousand years. In 490B.C, Pheidippides ran back to his home town of Athens to give a meaningful news of victory! Today the "proffessionally" trained reporters run around for the news of no use...no joy at all... meaningless craps they bring around.

Take for example. Two days back the Indian football captain, Bhaichung Bhutia has become father of two. His wife, Madhuri delivered the twins in a cuty hospital in Kolkata. The NEWS flashes: BHAICHUNG BHUTIA IS NOW A PROUD FATHER! These words are being flashes and repeated non-stop in a footage that was over 25 minutes long...and guess what...it didnt have any pic of the present Bhaichung...but a Pre-Daddy Bhaichung!!!

After the pillars at stephen court have been brought down, the news subsided and so was the hunt to identify the potential stephen courts! Two days old...people felt bored...switch on a new news...like the marraige scandal of Shoaib Mallick and Sania Mirza. In that, some PDS leader or something started a war cry to snatch all the awards Sania has had received as an Indian sportswoman! Now...that's sucking its head over heels! COME ON!
Mr. Muthalik...GROW UP!

The scars continues to impregnate the flesh and other parts of the anatomy, thanks to the thoughtless killings. After a long time, in today's [09.04.10], newspaper I came across a headline that voiced my question into the print media: Who are funding the Maoists? My solemn regret towards the family of the ones lost to the whims of Statehood!

I bet, no one found any sensibility from this article...randomized sounds vibrating from the mind and heart... The title should be justified, so I have done... I scooped out some news here and there...sadly stating the state of our security and intellectual downfall with age!

Friday, April 02, 2010

Calcutta... A Baptist Haven!!!

Left the city three years back for your higher studies in States? I have a few friends who fall within this elite category, which seemed un-touchable for me, for the time being. I have a few others who have had been working in and around this nation, away from the city for 2 years atleast. When these two lost liners met one day at the Khidderpore Port [The inland river port of Calcutta], they face an awesome dilemma. The place looked similar, but never sounded similar... or some as it is proposed will never sound similar.

The jinx: Well, its the franatic idealogy to change names. Trinamool Congress turns franatic, over the art of baptism, rechristening places from its 300 years old name to the new names. In the tryst to remember great people, the places names are changing...and if things go as it was a year ago, the party will rename the state as a whole...

Come to the Metro Railways, Tollygunge got its name made to Mahanayak Uttam Kumar. Justified, after having such a demand for over two decades... But then where does the places like Naktala, AshokNagar, Garia stand, when we have stations named after a book "Gitanjali", poet " Kavi Nazrul", freedom fighter "Masterda Surya Sen"...and so on! Dont ask me...I dont know the geographical locations at all! In the last budget, Ms. Banerjee, the Supremo Uno of TMC and the Hon'rble Railway Minister tries to rename more.Some are very absurd!
Kalighat: Shahid Bhagat Singh [NO LINK]
Chandni Chowk: Tipu Sultan [Never did that great king visit Chandni Chowk]
etc...

The rename list has new players as well... how about the Minister of State for Port Development, Mr. Mukul  Ray. He has announced the cremation ground, beside river Hugli, to be renamed from the historical Nimtala / Neemtala Ghat to Rabindra Ghat! Dont know why, but I feel that this is too much!

A promise to develop doesnt come with changing names... does it? Being a common man, its gives me great pain and confusion to recognize a place that have had a name for 300 years! Then why change? The names didnt pose any problems... if there is a problem then its the electricity and water logged streets during the monsoons! Please relieve us from these then it will us, the public who will start naming the "Good Seasons" after you "Great Politicians".

We are better off with the names in Kolkata...


(c) Somnath Paul: Jan 2010. Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata, WB, India.


Please...No more Name cHange!