Quite unexpectedly and accidentally I got hold of Sanchayita today. It was something I never expected when I went to talk to a fellow friend and found it on his desk wrapped in glittery paper. 'How come it's here, with you?'....was my first question to him...while I was flipping the pages to read the first poem, my all time favourite poem - Maranare Tuhu Momo Shyam Saman... 'One friend had been to Kolkata and I asked him to get it for me'....was my friend's answer. 'I'm taking it with me, I'm a bit free for some time now'...was my quick answer as I was already walking towards my bay; he didn't object though as he knows I'm not a book-snatcher.
It's such a wonderful experience to have this book on hand. While flipping the pages the old memories were gushing out from some hidden chamber of the brain, unvisited for a long time. It kind of gives me a guilt feeling that have I also abandoned it like all 'new generation' people are doing now a days. Reading a poem that also in Bengali, after all, is not an 'in' thing. Right? Or, may be I'm soundig like a nerd!
It used to be the long afternoons of summer vacations and brief evenings of winter vacations when my mother used to sit with Sanchayita in her lap, glass in her eyes and recite poems on public demand. Then those moments were very normal in our life, just like having lunch with tyangra maach or fighting with my twin sister. But now I realize how much precious moments they used to be. My mother's intense love for poetry and literature was something that always made us stay in touch with the works of Rabindranath Tagore. From the very childhood seeing the image of this snow-white-long-bearded gentleman made him a part of our family. He was ubiquitous; in the book covers, in the magazines, in the text books and more in my mother's presence. She always sings some bits or pieces while cooking or doing other works. My mother has this nightingale like voice. If sometime she was not humming anything, we used to be sure that something was wrong and she muct be upset.
Now whenever I go home I make it a point to have such a session at least once during my stay at home.
1 comment:
Nice post. I think this post reveals the real 'You'! This write up is so different than some of the recent others from you. Would like to read more on such trips to the nostalgic land of memories. Also whenever possible, please explain the beauty of Bangla poems in English, that will be helpful for those who don't understand the pure form of Bangla. I know you are simply great at translating songs, so translating poems isn't a tough task for you. Hope you consider my request. Thanks. :)
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