Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle all the way After many years my family went out on 24th of December. We took the metro to reach Esplanade station from where we walked to the New Market, once known as Sir Stuart Hoggs Market, which was established in 1874. The market is one of the oldest in Kolkata. Now the market has spread its wings around the old building, which shelters hundreds of shopkeepers, small and big. The place wears a completely different look especially during this season, from the Christmas to the New Year. Once upon a time the foreigners were the regular visitors of this place to buy cookies and greeting cards. The foreigners have left, leaving behind their legacy and some Anglo-Indians who still make the place lively during the last few days of the year. This year, there was a huge Christmas tree made of card board right next to the Lighthouse cinema hall (which is now a departmental store) and beside the tree was a picture of a smiling Santa. On top of the tree was th...
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I got my study table when I was only seven. The table, which seemed to me very huge then compared to my size, occupied a very important place in my heart and in our two-room quarter. The table was placed right next to our bed. It came to our quarter without a chair. I used to sit on the dining chair which was wooden just like the table. The new table of mine was a gift and I liked to study only because of it. I used to sit facing east. A teacher used to visit our house to teach me Mathematics. The fact that he will share the table was not at all acceptable to me. Moreover, I did not like his company. He did not visit from the second week. The chair was mine. I was elated. My journey of studying on a chair and a table started since then. The year, if I remember, was 1987. My father who had got the table also fixed an interesting table lamp on the wall facing the chair. But the light was not very comfortable for my eyes. I preferred the tube-light instead. Soon we shifted to our new quar...
Khwab ho tum ya koyii haqiqat, Kaun ho tum batlayo, /hoooo/ der se kitne dur khari hon, Aur kareeb aa jayo... Devanand was a craze once upon a time not only among the women of India but also among the men folk. The actor who died yesterday, was a somewhat look-alike of Hollywood gentleman star Mr Gregory Peck. Devanandji probably followed his style of acting. A style icon Devanand was once the heart-beat of the Hindi film industry or Bollywood. Unfortunately, the actor is no more. His tin-tin like hair lock like an inverted comma with his stylish head bent on a side and a scarf tied on his neck was so typical of him. He was the face for the voice of Kishore Kumar Ganguly. Devanand was incomplete on screen without Kishoreda. The actor's death reminds me of some great Hindi sound tracks... Gata rahe mera dil (my heart sings on...), Churi nehi mera dil hain (my bangles are my heart), Aj phir jine ki tamanna hain (I wish to live once again), and Dum Maro Dum, mit jaye hum, bolo subha ...
Flowers are one of the most beautiful creations of God. Some smell good, some others are known for their colours while a few have both. Some grow in our gardens and the wild ones prefer to grow in the forest. Roses, tube roses, merrigold, jasmine are some flowers that are commonly available in the local market. While a rose beautifies a room, a tube-rose garland adorns an idol in the temple; a merrigold is offered to our God at home and a jasmine garland tucked in a woman's hair makes a morning refreshing. A Jaba or a Hibiscus blooms in almost every garden in Bengal. This particular flower which I am talking here comes in different colours like bright red, deep yellow, soft pink and white which is so very rare. There are a wide variety of flowers which have no English names because they are found only in the villages of Bengal. A few of these are offered to Lord Shiva. Flowers which have long stems like Gladiolus and Roses are always kept in a bucket of water in a flower shop. The...
Once November arrives, the smell of nature changes. It is not only the second last month of the English calender but a month that takes a long time to pass by leaving behind a memory of a year fresh in mind. As the pain of getting older pricks inside, the only incentive that keeps the heart going is a bright December. The month which is so special specially for Christians. December is special for me because I celebrate my birthday and my parent's marriage anniversary. Needless to say I remember Lord Jesus too in this month from the 1st to the 25th. Somehow I feel sad on December 25. I can't explain why. Once I had been to a church on the 24th night, but I had to stand outside because of the crowd. But then December 25, the year if I remember, 1994 it was, was very cold. My father, my mother and I couldn't stand in that cold for too long. The fear was I might catch cold and then fall terribly ill. The December then and now is very different. Christmas in Calcutta during the ...
Each and every single day is a story. It’s a story when we wake up early, why we wake up early and what happens when the day starts early. What we do when we wake up early. How different is the day. How is the weather? Do the birds sing? Does the wind blow? How is the mood? Are you feeling happy or you are feeling jittery? Why exactly you are feeling happy or low? Are you thinking or you don’t have time to think. Look around. What is your family doing? Do they talk to you or they are busy with themselves. Or the daily routine is peaceful. If the day is not peaceful, why is it so? Hasn’t your maid come to work? Is your father’s work not going easy? Is your mother angry with something? Doesn’t she have enough stock of potatoes and onions? Why are your parents fighting over who will go to the market? Your father is very busy in the morning. Does he have more work to finish? Is he bringing work to home? Why? Is the salary enough to maintain a family of three? Maybe money is not the cas...
