The Last of the Titans...

I personally feel, despite him being a colossal figure in the political frame of Bengal, death to be the best thing that can happen at his age. He lived a life way too prolonged. Bearing the tallness of a position equally revered and disgraced. And dictating a state well-dominated, then under legends, now under leaders turning grotesque. A life well-frayed, which figuratively concluded with another battle in his residual days. Death probably had received him a little earlier than seventeen days, with the commencement of the medical term of "multi-organ failure", when straining eyesight and a struggling voice had to fight fervidly with age..to give way to the dying flicker of an erstwhile flame. Its often heard, that greats die with the failure of delivering greatness. And perhaps life is not livable enough for some to continue living it as breathing puppets. Not that the former chief minister of Bengal was someone complementary to controversies, but I personally feel him to possess that, which Bengal badly needs today. And that is, transcending all political margins, a Chief minister's voice. But what futher vitiates the aura prevailing today is the commercial computations of losses and gains manoeuvred amid the deceased leader's funeral. For I feel its absolutely savage for some pitiless persons to nudge emotions in helpless people, to evoke them to wish the speedy recovery for a nonagenarian person, which can serve no purpose greater than sufficing a billionaire's bread. I have my father in the press, and its him who taught me to read beyond the printed words deemed as Bible. But I really don't see any ground on why all the muck slung upon a person in his lifetime is tactfully obscured after his death under the blanket covering his corpse, only to drain business out of his cadaver. And after absurdly wasting hours leafing through them, I wish doom for the news channels which fail to refrain from avarice, no matter what, and read nothing cruel in 'selling' a person in his afterlife.

Adieu..

Its quite eerie to feel bad on the death of someone who is related to you in no way..not a friend, nor a foe, neither a chance acquaintance. Someone you just happen to know. And someone you had least thought of bothering you, even by means of death. Its really strange to feel remorse on someone bidding adieu whom you have always learnt to despise. And yet, after he departs, you hear your idols whom you have always listened to, speak good of the deceased. Mr. Subhas Chakravarty, one of the age-old veteran leaders of the 'yet'-ruling political party of my state ceased to exist this morning, amidst dreadful pain and suffering uncalled for. And it was till last Monday that the hymn woven by the Pied Piper thriving in him made people flock blindly to the meeting grounds in multitudes. A saviour of some, if not many, he supposedly had never expected public hearts pouring out on him on any event, belonging to the most severely criticised creed of Indian men. But nevertheless did he speak the truth outright, even on the face of his fellow partymen. Gray trousers and white formals with a Panama hat on top and buns of hair peeping through the sides- he has always looked the same in his trademark attire since the day I first saw him on my school grounds during annual sports some 7 years back, till today, when vignettes of his glorious era were being displayed incessantly in the news channels. A visualisation that, on a lighter note, have inspired many a go-as-you-like and mimic sessions. God does pay for all deeds, and so the people's leader has been saved of going through the agony of viewing the disappearance of his party's waning pallor. And time indeed can heal all that hurts...and the late leader's world will undisputably conquer the grief pervading over his loss. Dirty politics will follow. So will the practices of mud-slinging between some gray-haired naive country captains. And news channels will forever continue to lure behind TRPs by leafing through a person, even after death. But will the fissure created by this adieu ever get filled? Will the party ever manage to revive again under the eyes of such waning veteran leaders? I doubt.

The closing ceremony of 2008...

It has been long, since you came new,
Bundled with blessings for a countable few
As you depart tonight with the year's last dew
Up comes the morning Sun, with hopes and dreams anew..

.....And as the horizon juggles between sunset and sunrise, night and morning, 2008 and 2009, we refuse to be harsh to the year bidding goodbye. Save for the handful of smiles and blessings it has bestowed, on this last night of its stay with us, we readily fail to notice the blues through which it has made us suffer, the tears it has brought about within us. Though the apprehension over mass killings at random corners of the country fails to get blurred by a coveted mission to the moon, a 50,000 pound valued booker couldn't help the global market crashdown and the first gold medal couldn't moderate our grief over losing Dada, still we owe our bags full of gratitude to the year bygone for the tad bit of goodness it has done for us...a booker prize, an Olympic gold medal, victory of the Democrats...and yet a few unnoticed fleeting smiles it fruitfully brought about for a while or two among us.

On a personal note, it has been less of flower beds and more of thorns, being the most challenging year in my girlhood of eighteen years.
And despite taking him miles away from me, it eventually kept bringing us together.

And as 2008 wraps itself up...we, in our own accord, spare another hope and tear for Mumbai, Guwahati, Delhi, Agartala, Ahmedabad...and unconditionally thank all the Abhinav Bindras and Aravind Adigas around the world who, amidst all this, made an exchange of smiles possible between us.

P.S.- Happy New Year to everyone out there. Have a great year ahead.

An Impassive Farewell...

It was the season of saying goodbyes...To part and cry...Try and forget...And then move on...

And yet,everyone seemed so excited...

Never could I imagine a farewell to be so awaited...Studies almost became secondary as everyone got busy with rehearsals.Even the vice-president had to come all the way to the college field for the 'official' valediction.And we had our pockets pinching with the remaining pocket-money 'coins'; the rest,half-heartedly though,being sacrificed for the same.

It was farewell season at my school too.It had to say goodbye to its father.After all,it was that first principal,who had created and fathered it for 15 years.It must have felt remorse to part from him.
And there was another fresh gang of boys and girls leaving school with eyes full of dreams and tears...It felt nice to become one batch senior.

Everything demanded a change...a fresh start.

Amidst our busy routines in and out of the lab,another sound accompanied the noise of clashing test-tubes and of steam forcing out of the oven.It was the cooing of a little creature stuck in a cage in one corner...an albino rat...our dear li'l Ross.

It had been an inseparable part of the lab...and an "important" member of the department as much as us.In fact it happened to get more attention than the professors.So much so,that we couldn't bear it as something 'inhuman' and gave it a gender recognition.It became "Mr.Ross".

Attending Ross,atleast once in a practical class,had become a habit for all of us.Some loved him,some liked,and some laughed...even some ignored.But Ross was there on everyone's mind.For some,giving feeding him was prior to any practical work.And the rest,with the excuse of work,happened to gather at the corner of the lab only to have a chat with Ross.What more...he was even the cynosure of the sports day march...being the tiniest participant on ground.Clad in his white furs with a blue cap,he proudly went leading us all through the parade with a hoarding behind,written-"ROSS-THE LAB PET".He caught the attention of every single soul on the ground,and maybe he was the reason for our runaway success in that march.We were announced the winners and plannings were started for the departmental picnic.All because of Ross.

Days kept passing on as usual,until one day we came to know..Ross is not well.Somebody demanded a bigger cage for him,but the crude answer was...he has lived his life and is soon going to die.It seemed a severely harsh retort,but authority has to have the last word.Some said he had cancer,some said not.Some wept at the thought of losing him,some seemed to be least bothered.But all got tensed on the whole..Ross was again on everyone's mind...It was then,we came to know that Ross was a girl.Tears turned to laughter and it momentarily made us oblivious of the tension.Ross was forgotten.

It was yet another morning we gathered at the departmental lab..all too busy with their work.Maybe it was the first day no one noticed Ross.It was the lab assistant to come up..in an unsure state of mind..and convey the news to us.

Ross has died.

Suddenly there were cries of disbelief throughout the lab.Everyone rushed towards the cage in one corner.Ross was still there..eyes closed..and hundreds of insects strewn all over her.Some couldn't accept the fact,and said she was having a nap.May be she was.But this one won't break and was going to last.Forever.

It was some one hour later that we somehow managed to get time out,for bidding a last farewell to Ross.On reaching the corner,we saw no sign of Ross.Or her cage.A hope sprang up.Maybe she was alive.And had been taken to the vet.Curious eyes searched her all through the lab..before they fell on the cage.The lab assistant was cleaning it once and for all.Our queries got answered by the pointing of a finger towards the terrace.Ross was getting buried by some seniors.Our rush to the terrace for one final sight was of no avail...Ross was already deep beneath the earth.......

Days have kept passing by the same way since then.The test tubes still clash and break..and the hot-air oven continues to get perturbed by the steam.We are still busy with our rehearsals for the farewell.And talks are being made for bringing two more rats in the lab for some research work.This time the cages should be larger.And there are plans for the picnic..And for sports day,next year.Amidst our busy routines,we still walk in and out of the lab.We have again tried and forgotten...and then moved on...but Ross will possibly stay in our minds,atleast for some long.Some will cry,some will lament...and yet some will be least bothered.But on the whole,may be we will always miss Ross.................Or may be not.