Saturday, November 13, 2010

Bacchon Ka Bhavishya Ek Jalta Hua Diya

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jai ho chatth maiya
jai ho chatth maiya

keeping their ancestry
their heritage alive on juhu beach
hope and harmony a flickering flame
they breach in just an imaginary
moment walking their forefathers
footprints homeward they reach
the same lesson their own
children they will teach
to practice what you preach

When Bihar Comes To Mumbai

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vermilion on her head
she looked into my poets eyes
a broken wrist holding a camera
as i shot her childhood her youth
her motherhood complete and nice
holding her together chahth maiya
goddess of hope harmony
safeguarding her in mumbai
a glistening tear of gratitude
fell from her eye as i write this
my eyes too are filled with an ocean
within a human sigh we live
through our children we never die
our culture our traditions our rituals
our humility our hospitality
to gods goddesses
as befitting reply
on wings of hope harmony
on the karmic consciousness
of mother india
as we fly
a muslim blogger
a bihari ma a bihari bhai

Jai Ho Chhath Maiya Bihari Bambaiya

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As I have a dislocated wrist , the right hand I use for hitting the trigger was in great pain, it was not easy for me to push my way through the crowds and the sun was going down when I reached Juhu beach so I lost a lot of photo opportunities .

However I decided to shoot the common Bihari man and pay my tribute to his love for Chhath Maiya in Mumbai, the Bihari is transported to Bihar while standing in the waters of the Juhu beach..and this is poetry hitting the human soul in its cultural effervescence and home pride.

This is no muscle power or show of strength it is back to the roots devotion and the true spirit of living in peace in India.

Political parties of all hues try to take credit for a show here or a show there , folk songs that move the soul of the Bihari, but I reiterate the Bihari spirit is not as boisterous or unruly as you see on Ganesh Immersion at the Juhu beach in Mumbai..

Consider these as my observation as a poet photographer and this set is about the religious and cultural pride of being born a Bihari living in any part of India and showcasing the traditions of ones ancestry as harmony and heritage.

I did not shoot for too long I returned home in two hours , and the pain in my hand would not subside.

I have kept my Latur pictures on hold to post this lot , and Mumbai is a veritable crucible of all communities cohesively living in peace hope and harmony.

Chhat Puja Pride Of Bihari Migrant In Mumbai..2010

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I came barefeet to Juhu Beach to shoot the Chhat Puja 2010 an event I have passionately shot since several years to document the migrant Bihari ethos and culture , of a community that has made Mumbai its home and is considered one of the most peaceful one in our beloved city, , the Bihari migrant is a tale of hope on the move and integrity determination to make it big at all cost and give their children a much better chance than they ever had..

The Biharis face persecution, but take everything in their stride and gradually become a integral part of society or state they adopt.

The Bihari ethos is kept alive by the Chhat Puja dedicated to Chhat Maiya the deity of fertility and bright hope ..

This year I reached the beach at 6 pm thanks to the neck to neck traffic and missed a lot of stuff , the crawlers or earth markers worshipers of the Sun God.


But this year I decided to pay tribute to the common Bihari and kept myself away from the political jamboree on the Juhu Beach.

I dedicate this new set to my earthly Guardian Angel of all times Mrs Punam Sinha wife of Mr Shatrughan Sinha , born in a Sindhi family she has kept the pride of Bihar and its heritage alive , her children have been groomed nurtured on the Bihari culture and folklore ..respect for elders polite talk Adab and Tehzeeb made in Bihar.

And I must confess here as a Muslim blogger who shoots Hope and Hindutva as a message of Peace , that if ever my house fell apart all the bricks of my house may have Allah written on it but one brick would have Ram written on it too, as every time in life whenever I changed my house or took a new shop on rent I would take a small token of Rs 100 from the Sinhas to add to my hard earned money when moving into a new place.

This has been the Mantra of my humility and a reciprocal response of love from the Sinhas to my family ..a family that is my extended family since 25 years or more.

And Mrs Punam Sinha entrusted me a Muslim worthy to carry the token of her gratitude to Lal Bagh Chya Raja before the release of Dabbang..she had given me Rs 5001 , 5 tickets of Dabbang first day first show and ladoos that I asked my good friend Raju Langewal of the Lalbagh Chya Raja Pandal to place at the feet of Lal Bagh Chya Raja at the first Art to the King Of King Of Mumbai..

I shoot the Lalbagh Chya Raja first day first show before his presence is made public at the Press Meet .a day before .
The rest is history and Sonakshi Sinha has arrived..with Da Bang.

Happy Chhat Festival to All of You

The Mahatmas Soul Cannot Rest In Peace

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hovering like a bird in broken flight
from above he sees his country's plight
the poor more poorer
the rich dominant
might is right leaders in name for
personal wealth they fight
once a school teacher now
has reached a new height
the name of ambedkar sells
lead kindly light making
fools of the electorate
as they buy votes and slight
tuning hope to despair
dawn to night

The Hijra And Me In Latur

152,738 items / 1,187,658 views

we met at latur
near
the ganj golai
we both
residents
of mumbai
sharing the same guru
a karmic ploy
she was
a bit cocksure
a wee bit shy and coy
a hijra neither man
no woman
only a lady boy
used abused
by a fucked system
a hijra no one
will ever employ
used misused
as a sexual toy
if caught fucked
by the religious men
fucked by the men in khaki
nothing but sanity
left to annoy
the dark dusky hijra
her beauty no less than
helen of troy

My Tryst With The Hijra In Latur

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I met her by chance through a single moment her sidelong glance
I was certainly not in a trance destiny and the hijras destiny as it zooms
on my soul perchance a step forward a step back tantric dance
call it what you want to she said its was a ethereal romance
a muslim barefeet blogger an androgyne ..at latur instead of Cannes

The Hijab In Latur

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is what the muslim women wear
as their religious identity for sure
totally spiritual divinely pure
within its soul the muslim
woman secure unlike
the hindu niqab a fastidious
street fashion statement
prevention and no cure
only the hijab is testimony
of our changing time
unchangeable endures
from one generation to the next
the muslim woman is reassures

Now If You Ask Her Who Is The New CM .. She Will Be Stumped For An Answer

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governments come
governments go
chief ministers come
chief ministers go
such is life
life's flow
for time and tide
nothing waits
her stomach
is what keeps
her alive
her hunger
her khali pet
she thinks
its her bad kismet
she neither loves
or hates .
the good lord
ganesha
hanumanji
jagdamba ma
mahalakxmi devi
provide for her needs
a few morsels
on a broken plate
she will be stumped
for an answer if you
ask her who is the
new CM of our state
one chavan for another 'chavan
destiny is what madame dictates

Hey Ram A Bullet Hits Him Over And Over Again


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his death ridiculed
forever did he die
in vain a single bullet
in his soul remains
a struggle for freedom
his people enslaved
in more pain
once khadi wearing netas
now in Irish starched linen
have bound his beloved
mother India once more in
corruption in every domain
for an adarsh ideal
a tower of babel on the
soul of governance
ingrained
the nation back in chains
the mahatma sheds tears
another bullet more
vicious than the first
hey ram hits him
over and over again
humanity down
an open drain
purple haze
atomic rain
dysfunctional
karmic brain
gandhi looks
towards karbala
humilty thy name
is hussain
a memory
gives birth to
a blood stain

To a Poet from another Poet ..In Good Faith..
to Aditya Thackeray ..

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