Rukhi aidiyoon main ab bas rahi hai duniya,
Aankhein jee rahi hain, roz ek naya qissa.
Naye log, naye hai ehsaas,
Jeevan jeene ka yeh nav-abhaas
Drishy jo kitni bar-dekh, bhi andekhein the,
Saamay ki ankahi dhool main, dafne the,
Muskaan ki jhurriyoon main aaj ubhar rahe hain.
Meri gheri, pehli, swach swaas.
Nivritt, here, implies freedom from responsibility, retirement.
Ek bewafaai aur mili tumhari jeb se,
Siahi ke nishaan, ek muchade hue bill pe.
Kuch der sambhale rakha unhe,
Maine apne mathe ki shikan pe.
Befikr nazar churai tumne,
Main bhi muskura di,
Tumhare lateefe ki ot main,
Din ka varnan, awaaz main hasee aur ulass.
Chaha tumse pooch hi lu aaj,
Laboon tak laakar, rukh gayi kitni baar.
Goonj us sawaal ki,
Shanka mere mann Ki
Kitne kadam door ho tum, es dayere paar
Us siahi ko toh baha diya maine,
Katra katra kar, jeeni hogi, ab yeh daraar.
You know its been a great weekend, when on a Monday, you pull out the scribbling on the back of an industry report, to update a long forgotten blog. An inspired moment, unedited, a first in hindi for me.
Kaal
Is shor main jo ulajhta ja raha hoon,
Apne mann ke dhagaon ko-bun,
Kabhi udhaidta ja raha hoon
Zindagi ke pal jo beet ja rahe hain
Unhe samait,
Sulajhta ja raha hoon.
Seekh raha hoon,
Sambhal raha hoon.
Apni ki hui galtiyoon pe kabhi itra,
Kabhi sukhoon bhi pa raha hoon.
Mudh ke dekhna, galat nahi.
Aage jo hai, uske beetne pe,
Apne kal ki udharana pata ja raha hoon.
Meri lakiroon main, meri gaatha nahi.
Khud ki jeevani, main likhta aa raha hoon,
Guroor ya abhimaan hai,
Vidhata ki kuch dain bhi.
Karamoon ke upkaar,
Aage apne soch ke buland iraadon pe chaltein ja raha hoon.
My blog Spoken Word: Jugalbandi of Words and Art was about my journey discovering this beautiful art form, a confluence of poetry, storytelling & music.
I shared an English playlist with you and promised a Hindi one too.
Here are the gems I found: Playlist
All of this needn’t be serious and romantic. The genre lends itself to comedy and in my humble opinion rapping should qualify too. So here are some of the unconventional ones.
…and many more Here
With your suggestions this list could only get better. Do drop in a comment if you enjoyed discovering some of these tracks and share the ones you love.
Love of poetry and storytelling made me stop flipping radio stations and listen to “The deck of cards” by Tex Williams;
Experiencing a Haruki Murakami moment “Whatever it is you are seeking won’t come in the form you are expecting.” I discovered a form of art, Spoken Word.
An estuary of narrative and music for the soul.
A confluence of words and performing art, dance and theatre.
All this, over a banal trip, ridden with gnarling Delhi traffic, browsing through FM channels indifferently, driving back across 3 states from work.
I was in the throes of a scripturient urge to celebrate my finding. The drive seemed longer than usual, there was so much to do; quench my curiosity by reading more, attend to a deluge of examples, listen to new finds and compile a playlist. Most of this though, was curtailed to the luxury of late evenings that afforded time for myself.
Political motivations, social causes, religious discourses, leadership speak, life experiences, stories, folklore and many more expressions have found themselves in this experimental art form. Examples of which will follow.
Sunscreen, Are you lonesome tonight, Yeh kahan aa gaye hum, have been all time favorites, only today I know better, I can flaunt the genre of music they belong to and discover more such gems.
Here is a playlist
There are several songs with parts in spoken word. Explore the musicians in the list. Drop in a comment if you like any of these or have suggestions.
Coming up: A playlist for Hindi spoken word songs. Stay Tuned!
Finding love in unreal places
A beautiful story, defaces.
Vacillating countenance
Dry eyes cried aloud.
How could the gospel truth
Be so far beyond?
Never looked me in the eye.
All that numbed my head,
Affections without a stance.
Belied.
Trials of belief in self,
Time and again.
Dainty love,
Coffined his strength.
Victory of her demonstrated vulnerabilities,
There was never a battle to win.
Can’t cry foul and yellow,
No bone to pick,
Each conceded,
Cackles to bouts of silence,
Venting of one, sans duologue.
Relenting once into momentousness
No memories, just flashes.
Blinded then, in hindsight.
Surreal, in time.
looking for love in unreal places.
Finding love in undone spaces
Every cent you take
You give back a dollar.
Every moment you fake,
You get closer to reality.
Its all about un-thought unscrupulous mortality.
Deathless.
Breathing life into listless insanity.
What really is sanity?
Is the glass half full?
Or egg half broken?
Am I simply an opportunist?
A characterization of contrived adherence?
or a picture of societal free fall?
You will love me tomorrow,
Do you see me with you today?
Time is not uni-dimensional
But a multidimensional mess.
Walking dark alleys,
Silencing poltergeists.
Or is that scream a longing for silence?
Palpable.
Untouched.
or conveniently forgotten?
Delving into condescending duality,
The spell of frivolous lust and greed.
Knowing men are vents for gods sins
HER unpretentious pleasures
His happiness but a mirage.
HER love for him, a masquerade.
And when was it that you saw beyond the almighty’s mask?
HER surreal identity,
His unforgiving hypocrisy,
Both brutal.
I sit by the sidewalk,
Investing cents for a dollar to roll back.
-Jugalbandi @Route04
Curio-Cities by Dilpreeta Vasudeva 