Taking Flight

Meeting you was

Like a bird's wings beating,

As it took flight,

Seeing you smile was a true delight,

And my notebook was all I had with me,

Torn pages that fluttered in the wind,

Blame it on the bad binding,

All but the last page,

Covered in doodles

Which had your number written on it,

That page too will flutter away one day,

Just as hatchlings leave their nest,

The winds will carry it far away,

Or perhaps the sea will try to make the lettering fade,

But, I believe one day,

I'll find a scrap of that page,

That has your number on it,

Because I wrote it 

Using waterproof ink

The Bilge Master

Why Did The Chicken...

This poem is inspired from the photograph attached below. It was taken by a friend of mine, Shantam at Park Street

Yesterday as I was waiting for a cab,

I did not know that 

Instead of finding a way back home,

I would actually leave a question unanswered, for quite some time,

Standing at that street crossing,

I thought I saw something on the other side,

And I couldn't believe my eyes,

Which is perhaps what caused the camera in my hands to shake,

As the shutter closed,

You see I needed proof of what I was seeing,

Because it was remarkable,

Then I figured that perhaps,

I would have better luck 

On the other side of the street,

But it was dark and I did not see,

An open manhole waiting for me,

And so, I come back to the unanswered question,

Which has been somewhat modified to include a chicken,

Why was I crossing the road?

And the answer is, 

Because I was looking for You

The Bilge Master

The Self, and Greater Things

This is a guest post written by a friend in the Jadavpur University Dept. of English. I loved the way he ended it. Please welcome Koustav Naiya to the blog people! 

The Bilge Master

An empty page 

Was seeking words

But the mind reeked of love

An empty poet 

Sat by the door 

Stared at the stars above

He wished to rhyme

Of greater things

He sought a muse in war

Of lives that ceased

And left to rot

In the wasted lands afar

He looked for words

In the streets

And tales they seem to tell

Of the crowd

Their whereabouts

Of the town under a spell

He gazed around

Waited for a sound

For a whisper or a dream

He looked so hard

For a place to start

But forgot to look within

Twenty Years

I remember a schoolboy, dressed in baggy shorts,

That got soiled everyday without fail,

No matter what my mother had to say,

I remember coming home at around five,

To watch the new episode of Pokemon on the TV,

And the plate of Maggi I'd be given to eat,

I remember my profound hatred for Maths 

And the bald dude who came one day and drove me mad,

I remember a thirteen year old boy, who had sent a writeup to his school mag,

And the fifteen year old fat guy, who took his dog for a walk,

And then at age sixteen, the moody ineffectual,

With bad grades and an acid tongue, 

Lashing out at everyone within range,

The angry young man who for some reason,

Could never forget, nor forgive, nor let things be,

I remember a seventeen year old, who started to write a blog,

That has thirteen thousand views and support from near and dear ones,

I remember all this, and yet,

I don't remember the happiness I had felt,

I have changed and I don't understand,

Where I'm going or what I'm doing,

Twenty years, I've been looking in the bathroom mirror

Yet, there are days,

When I do not recognize the face staring back

The Bilge Master

A Lot Does Happen

A long day of class has passed,
Or maybe I've just got time to kill, 
I don't really know which,
Either way, me and my friends, 
Head down south out of college
And into the streets
Relaxing with a smoking cup in our hands, 
Cradled from the wind,
And Subho starts telling us about the girl he's kissed,
He describes her eyes and her smile,
We tell him to he'll be married in style,
He blushes and quietens down,
As another cup comes our way,
And then it's my turn to tell a tale,
There by the corner shop without a name,
Hours pass in the blink of an eye,
And then we walk down to the station,
Having had our dose of that liquid relaxation,
It's true what they say my friend
A lot does happen over coffee each and everyday

The Bilge Master

Just Another One of Those Days

It's been a while since I've written paragraphs and a really longer while since I've spewed out some philosophical stuff, so I thought I'd just ramble on for a bit about things under the sun.

For starters, I really dunno what's going on these days and I'm too busy with college and other social obligations to sort of sit down and think. When I DO think about stuff, it's usually a grand ol' mix up.

Therefore, this is an attempt to sort of relax out and to clear some space out. I guess there's been a lot of stuff happening lately y'know?

Thankfully, one thing has remained constant. Bryan Adams still brings a smile to my face. I'm currently blasting "18 Till I Die". What I like about this is that it's eons away from Porcupine Tree or Radiohead and other such melancholy and downright depressing stuff; which I was chiefly listening to last month. It's not surprising really that I want a change. How much of "Hey man, hold on" or "Did you feel the envy of a thousand sons of mothers tearing you apart?" can a guy take? Not that I have anything against Yorke or Wilson. But then again, I need a break and I need to come back to a totally different genre of music for a while.

Speaking of different things, I spent a considerable amount of time in a sort of limbo, looking for stuff to do. I don't get why this happened yet. Let's see which way the wind blows. 

Until then a certain Mr. Rod Stewart's gonna keep me company.

The Bilge Master

Minutes to Mumbai- A Photoblog

I recently went to Mumbai to attend my cousin sister's wedding and I clicked away like a madman while I was there, with this idea of making a sort of photo blog once I got back. So, here it comes.

It all started with the train ride down to Bombay (Mumbai)

"Always the Summers

Are Slippin' Away..."

These are random shots taken in the train or from just outside the window of the coach.

Now, of course, sitting there on the berth for a good 26 hours is tedious and so we made sure we had plenty of this beverage called tea

I reached Mumbai 26 hours later, tired and excited. For one it was a new city and for two I was gonna meet my whole family for the first time. Some of these people I had seen when I was very young, and some of them I never knew existed. Such as my cousins.

Of course, at this point in time I must introduce the full family, comprising my aunts and uncles from different cities and states who all showed up for the wedding.

And of course, what's a wedding without the people getting married? Introducing my didi, Shreya Dam Shah and her husband, my jiju, Nirav Shah

Then of course, there was the reception over at the Wankhede Stadium, where these two young gentlemen stood out in their suits

And of course, the ladies made their presence felt in equal measure

Bombay presented me with an opportunity to take a random Photowalk the next day

We also found a little time to celebrate Mamadadu's birthday amidst the wedding festivities

And so, in these shoes of mine, I went across to a different state, participated in a wedding, met my family, saw a new city, took pictures and am sharing them with you. My wanderlust has been sated for the moment, but it will soon return and off I'll go once again, with the camera at my side!

The Bilge Master