Bishan...Bishna...Bisayya

Pari ka nagla... yes Pari ka nagla that's the name of the village near Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh in India. During British period Uttar Pradesh (U.P.) was known as United Province. Same way as Madhya Pradesh was Central Province. Villagers in general have this strange tendency of playing with one's name. For them Krishan or Kishan becomes Kisna while Sona Devi is conveniently converted and abbreviated to Son dei. Bishan was a happy go lucky young man like other youth of his age group in the village. In villages, marriage season dawns like other seasons of climate and marriages are arranged one after another with such a great fervor and speed that any youth of marriageable age, if single will be odd man out and can not hope to be both-- remain in village and remain unmarried for long. So our great Bishan too when came of age, was perceived as threat enough by the fathers of marriageable daughters and self appointed guardians of morality in the village. The one point program of bride searching was undertaken. He was handsome fair complexioned young man with athletic build. He had only one flaw.He had only one eye. I don't know whether he was born with one eye or he lost one in transit while growing up. Handsome he was and represented the innocence villagers in India till recently were famous for.

The marriage- middlemen took upon themselves this onerous task of bringing the best possible proposal for 'our Bishan' not withstanding the absence or shall i say, presence of one eye. So with gaiety, known and limited to villages now, our Bishan was married. It was an arranged marriage. In arranged marriages, one may get to see the whole village and army of near and not so near relatives but one can not hope to see (forget meeting) one's would be life partner. As the dust and din of almost a week long marriage celebrations settled, the inevitable question of visibility handicap of Bishan became glaring. People were talking and talking endlessly. Bishan's mates were ridiculing and ridiculing scathingly. Something which till yesterday was a light comment or no issue at all seem to ve occupied the center stage. Neither a married Bishan nor the pretty bride could stand it anymore. Result ?, the marriage broke off without having been consummated. The bride went to her parents village for the customary 'phera' and did not return. The brothers and uncles of the bride were spoilsport and played truants. Poor Bishan in a less than fortnight of his marriage was rechristened Bishna. Suddenly, he seemed to ve lost all the sheen of a responsible married man. He was butt of all the latest jokes. There was no joke which mischief mongers could not play around to include Bishna in poor light as the central character.


Years passed. However hard Bishna tried to forget his past it bounced back with greater force. The villagers too would never let it be forgotten neither by them nor by Bishna. Anything and everything eventually ended on the note which had a ruthless reference to his one eye and one failed marriage. Poor Bishna was not all that educated nor nurtured any such ambition which could ve taken him to places, forget places at least away from this village where even children seemed to ve known all the details of his marriage and runaway bride.He became the working 'labor' hand of the household. He was made to serve even his younger brothers who were doing college and hence, had become 'older' to Bishna.He was reduced to farm hand. Always busy doing hard labour in the field. Be it sowing time or reaping time, harvesting and Bishna became synonym.By now, grown in age and reduced in stature, Bishna had become Bisayya.A poor Bisayya. Absolutely not bothered about himself. Bisayya was no more caring for the world nor the world cared for Bisayya.He was living, because he was not dead yet. He was just tilling and toiling. His tears had long dried up. Each marriage in the village hardened him further. It is said, beneath the hard crust of land lies the source of water. His exterior was hard but somewhere he had a faint hope that one day he too will be a happy family man with a beautiful wife and several children to extend helping hand in the harvesting time.


Although, it began with blaming individuals soon Bisayya discovered the ultimate truth and settled for the fatalist dictum we Indians are so fond of 'it was my fate'. So having rested all his misfortunes and miseries on his fate, Bisayya found lot of peace within. As if he had finally reconciled and accepted whatever the fate brought for him. Dejected and rejected one day he decided to run away and run away so far off that no body not even he himself would recognize him. Bisayya ran away, which direction ? he did not know, which village ? he did not know.. He kept walking village after village ;lost in his own world. By evening he was both, thirsty and hungry . More hungry than thirsty. He had no money.Which village it was ? He had no education. He spotted from a distance that there is a well by the side of the village. He walked in that direction, hoping that he may at least get stomach full water. By the time he reached the well, the last group of belles had gone away with their fill in the pitchers/brass - pots. He could see one lady in the veil with empty pot. He went near her requested for water. He found she was not listening. He repeated his request. Again she did not listen. Suddenly, he observed, she was sobbing. Bisayya got a bit uneasy and a lot frightened. This time he asked for water in a loud voice. We all raise our voice to ward off fear when scared. This time she obliged Bisayya, but kept crying. Her crying became loud. Bisayya had to ask her why was she sobbing. She said "though i am married, my own folks have turned my enemies and not allowing me to go to my in-laws place. i hear my husband has not remarried and is still waiting for me, my husband has a heart of gold, so what if he has only one eye"



P.S. All the bitterness of ten long years was washed  away.She was brought back with due honor and far greater fanfare then witnessed during the marriage. In times to come, she gifted four beautiful  children to our dear Bisayya.

एहसास

61.
बादल गड़गड़ा के जम गए

होंठ कुछ कहते कहते थम गए

प्रिय तेरी हर मुलाक़ात ने

मुझे दिये हैं कुछ ग़म नए


62.

केशों के घने सघन साये

कुछ इस तरह गगन पे छाए

सूरज ने लाख कोशिश की

सवेरे लौट कर न आए

63.

तुम्हारे साथ की यादें नासूर हो गयीं

मेरी मुहब्बत की बुलंदियाँ ही मेरा कुसूर हो गयीं

अच्छा हुआ जल्दी ही मेरी जगह मुझे बता दी

चलो कुछ गलतफहमियाँ तो दूर हो गयीं

64.

ऐसी चली ज़माने की हवा

अज़ीज़ माँगने लगे मौत की दुआ

नज़रिये पुराने हो गए

अब यही चलन है, नया कुछ भी नहीं हुआ

65.

दिल लिखना, नसीब लिखना

दर्द लिखना,ज़िंदगी लिखना

कितना मुश्किल है

उनपे कुछ भी लिखना

गेसूओं पे क्या कहूँ

जो पहले नहीं कहा

उनकी ये ज़िद

इनपे फिर भी कुछ लिखना

नर्म,गुलाब पंखुरी से होंठ तेरे

अता करें ज़िंदगी

मुश्किल है इस से बरतरफ़

इनपे कुछ लिखना
तेरी आँखों का मशकूर मैं

इस जनम फिर मुझे पहचान लिया
मुमकिन नहीं इनकी जादूगरी पे
दीगर कुछ भी लिखना

दिल लिखना.. नसीब लिखना

66.

तमन्ना नहीं राँझा या मजनूँ बनूँ

तमन्ना नहीं किसी की रातों का जुगनूँ बनूँ

हसरत अगर थी तो सिर्फ एक

तमाम उम्र उसी का रहूँ,मैं जिसका बनूँ

67.

भटकन इतनी थी ज़िंदगी में

सारी ज़िंदगी ही भटकन बन गयी

वस्ल की एक घड़ी ने किया है वो काम

एक छोटी सी रात ज़िंदगी भर की तड़पन बन गयी.

68.

जिनसे हुए थे वादे ताउम्र साथ निभाने के

वो साथ रह कर भी अजनबी हो गए

मेरे सभी ख्वाब, एक के बाद एक,

बस मुल्तवी हो गए

अपने चाक गरेबान का ग़म नहीं मुझे

चल तेरे अरमान तो पूरे हो गए

69.

गुलशनपरस्त काँटों मे दो दिन भी रह न सकेंगे

ये काँटे ही हैं जो, फिर भी निभाये जाते हैं

इस पर भी बस होता तो नियामत थी

हमें तो कायदे से रहने के फरमान सुनाये जाते हैं

70.

आज नहीं तो शायद कल पता चल जाये

ये मेरा इश्क़ है,तेरा हुस्न नहीं जो ढल जाये

मेरी दीवानगी देख,मेरी वफ़ा देख

मैं कायल हूँ तेरे खुलूस

तेरे तबस्सुम, तेरे ख्यालात का

आज तू जवाँ है, तेरी दुनियाँ हसीं हैं

तू फ़ैसला कल पे न छोड़

कौन जाने कब ये मंज़र बदल जाये

तेरा हर कौल मुझे मंज़ूर

मैं अगले जनम तक

फिर तेरा इंतज़ार कर लूँगा

चल तेरा ये अरमान भी निकल जाये

आज नहीं तो शायद कल पता चल जाये ..

मेरा आज का शेर

इक तरफा मुहब्बत में कोई हम सा न पाओगे

हमने कुल ज़माने से मुहब्बत की है

DALIT MOVEMENT... QUO VADIS?

(On the occasion of Baba sahib’s 119th Birth day.)

                                                                                                                                           Dr Bhimrao Ramjirao Ambedkar, Baba sahib to his millions of followers came on socio-political horizon at a time when the dalits in particular and society and country in general needed him the most. That was the time when a new nation was in its embryonic stage. The alleviation of miseries faced by dalits day in day out was one field he chose to struggle for. The reason is not far from our search, he himself grew facing all the hardships. He was not merely a silent witness but was a subject of all those insults hurled at his face. Discrimination is an understatement to describe what all he underwent living in poverty. That is the principal difference between him and almost all the leaders of that era, as they hailed from affluent kulak class. If there was a single leader of that era who could be called 'self made' it was him.  He bulldozed his way with his sheer brilliance and fiery passion few could match till date when it comes to upliftment of dalits in real sense. For him the Power was an instrument to help uplift hapless masses whom he represented while for others Power was the ultimate trophy and dalit movement only a convenient excuse to grab that Power.

No wonder the dalit movement suffered a severe blow 1956 onward after his demise. There was no giant of a leader to take over the baton from him. Who we were left with could best be described as regional forces with limited energy, impact and vision. The vacuum was not created all of a sudden. In fact the Republican Party founded by him could send as many as ten member the highest ever to second Lok Sabha.(incl 1 in R.S.) The Bourgeois class has the necessary wherewithal and patience coupled with fellow 'sympathisers'. Together they could break the very backbone of dalit movement. The decade of sixties saw unabashed hobnobbing with powers that be and the leadership reduced both in size and stature. While Bengal had Jogindernath Mandal, Bihar had thrown Babu Jagjivan Ram whom Congress kept showcasing till he parted ways to form CFD (Congress for Democracy) in late seventies. We had Rai Bahadur N. Shivraj, popular among his followers as 'Daddy' but alas! he too was not available for long and his area of influence was limited  to down south alone.In north we saw Prof B.P. Maurya emerging as a passionate orator and champion of dalit cause. Sadly, his courtship with Powers of the time could get him a ministrial berth in Government of the day and no more. That was the tragic end of his political career. No dalit movement worth the name can ever ever claim anything worthwile for poor masses in general till it rests on the crutches of Governmental support. Dalit leadership has to realise that swimming with the current can give them personal gratification but not the mass base nor the sense of achieving something meaningful for their ‘people’.

The worst affected was Maharashtra, there was suddenly a dearth of leaders in the land which once boasted to be cradle of dalit surge right since Bhakti movement onwards. The galaxy of social activists who were committed to core and devoted their entire life towards the lofty cause of bringing renaissance in the society hitherto neglected was the best example in the World how a movement is carried forward to the masses in the various forms be it Tamasha, temple entry or intellectual inputs. In Maharashtra, Bhayya sahib Y.B. Ambedkar son of Babasahab failed to rise to occasion and capture the imagination of masses. He had no program. By then Powers had already made deep in roads in the movement. We had Dadasahab B.K Gaikwad a sole torch bearer but he too needed support of Congress to return to Lok sabha or Rajya sabha. All others were not in reckoning for national leadership be it B.C. Kamble, Barrister B.D. Khobragade, Anna sahab Patil or R.S. Gavai. Their vision, if any, was pathetically limited and they were low achievers and often found happiness in the crumbs.

This generation of freedom movement era once faded away, we were left with self styled leaders who were searching for the 'led' and were jostling for as little as Membership of Council of Ministers. We had whole lot of 'young' leaders who wanted as little as membership/chairmanship of local bodies. For them it became an easy medium  of acquring self serving  recognition and riches.Like career diplomats, we had a new breed of career politicians, worst still career 'champions' of anything dalit, be it welfare, politics, or literature. Ram Vilas Paswan, once an entrant of Guinness Book of World Record for having won the Lok sabha election with highest margin was vying for ministrial berth in Government after Government. In fact by now dalit leaders became truly 'secular' they had no qualms whatsoever to be with any group or political party. Choice was clear, objective unambiguous and Ideology a casualty. The dalit movement had reached its nadir.

Nature abhors vacuum. Slowly but surely, late shri Kanshi Ram,though from Punjab but again Maharashtra as his 'karmbhoomi' was busy with his mission through DS-4, BAMCEF and finally BSP. The BSP had its own high and lows but one thing the leadership knew right from beginning was always, always to swim against the current. The movement could not have been handed over in a platter as a swap for anything temporary and mundane. Whenever it was alliance time, that too was on the Terms dictated by BSP and rest as they say is a history. The dalit movement has come a full circle.

Dalit leadership has to understand this and understand it too well that you swim with current; you lose your identity forever for some 'silver'. You swim against the current; you gain Identity and a prominent place in Golden letters in the annals of dalit resurgence. But you require strong will, stronger strategy and strongest of vision for that. That is where Baba sahab’s magic words resonate 'Educate... Organise ...Agitate'

एम बोले तो ....

एम बोले तो मुन्ना भाई सेकंड, जिसने हमारी गांधीगिरी से मुलाक़ात कराई. वरना हम तो कबके ओरिजनल कूल गांधी को भूल चुके थे. जितने गांधी आजकल चल रेले हैं वे उस विनटाज़ ब्रीड के नहीं. एम से और भी बहुत कुछ चल रेला है. एम बोले तो मनमोहन. आज की तारीख में उनसे ज्यादा गांधीगिरी से पीड़ित ... नहीं नहीं प्रभावित और कोई नहीं. बोले तो मन मार कर भी हँसना पड़ता है. दिखाना पड़ता है कि सत्ता के दो केंद्र नहीं एक हीच है. बोले तो उस पार मुशर्रफ इस पार मनमोहन.



एम बोले तो मंडल कमीशन जो कमीशन न हो कर अब एक मिशन बन गया है. ए.बी.सी. से लेकर ओ .बी.सी. तक या कहिए एक्स वाई ज़ेड तक पूरा देश ही पिछड़ गएला है, पता नहीं बचेला कौन है . कोई पैसे से पिछड़ा है कोई पढ़ाई से,कोई पावर से कोई पोलिटिक्स से. एम बोले तो अब मालेगाँव को ही ले लें जैसे अमीरी का कोई मजहब नहीं होता वैसे ही गरीबी का कोई मजहब नहीं होता. मालेगाँव हो या मुंबई ब्लास्ट ,खून इंसानियत का ही बहता है. हमेशा इंसानियत ही मरती है.



एम बोले तो एम.बी.ए.. आजकल डॉक्टर इंजीनियर और आई ए एस के अलावा अगर किसी चीज़ की सॉलिड डिमांड है तो वह है एम.बी.ए. हमारे वक्त में एम.बी.ए. दो-तीन विषयों में होती थी. अब दो-तीन सौ विषयों में एम.बी.ए की जा सकती है. मसलन एम.बी.ए. इन दूध दुहना अंग्रेजी में बोले तो मिल्क टेक्नालजी. आने वाले वक्त में एम.बी.ए. इन प्याज,टमाटर, बैंगन प्रोडक्शन से लेकर एम.बी.ए इन मेकअप,एम.बी.ए इन वजन घटाना, एम.बी.ए. इन कुत्ता टहलाना, एम.बी.ए इन भीड़ जुटाना, जैसे उपयोगी एवं समसामयिक विषयों पर भी एम.बी.ए. की जा सकेगी. टेंशन नहीं लेने का भाई. इन कोर्सों में दाखिला दिलाने को कोचिंग सेंटर भी चलेंगे अब लालू जी मेनेजमेंट पढ़ाने पहुँचे हैं तो एम.बी.ए. को भी नयी दिशा,नयी आवाज,नया महत्व मिलेगा. यूँ अपुन का देश लालू और ज़ैल सिंह सरीखों से पटरी नहीं बैठा पाता है. अपुन काले अंग्रेजों को ये माफिक नहीं गिरता कि कोई देशी खाटी आदमी बड़ा आदमी बन जाए. याद करें सबसे ज्यादा जोक्स इन्हीं पर बनाये गए हैं.



एम बोले तो ममता दीदी व मायावती बहिन जी. भाई इनके बारे में आजकल कम दिखायी-सुनायी पड़ रेला है. बोले तो ये कहीं मार्क्सवादियों और मनुवादियों की कोई नयी साज़िश तो नहीं भाई. अगर तूफान से पहले की शांति है तो वांदा नहीं. अपुन को मालूम है ये जब निकल पड़ती हैं तो सबकी वाट लगा देती हैं.



एम बोले तो मारुति. मारुति वालों ने अपनी कारों के कितने मॉडल्स निकाले हैं उन्हें खुद भी याद नहीं होगा. मैं क्या बोलता हूँ बोले तो मुंसिपालटी वालों से कह के सड़कें भी तो मारुति लायक करवा दें. आप ही बतायें चौथे गियर,पाँचवे गियर का क्या फायदा जब बापरने का नहीं. बस शो के वास्ते है. एम बोले तो मेट्रो, मेट्रो ने आवागमन की सुविधा तो दी मगर ये फायदा तो कुछ भी नहीं. असली फायदा तो यह है कि जहाँ जहाँ से मेट्रो गुजर रही है वहाँ प्रॉपर्टी के भाव आसमान छू रेले हैं. मेट्रो नीचे.. प्रॉपर्टी रेट ऊपर.इसको कहते हैं जीओ-पोलिटिकल टेकनो-इकनोमिकल बेनीफिट. हिन्दी में बोले तो नेता लोग इसी को चहुंमुखी विकास बोलता है.



एम बोले तो मोबाइल ... जिसने संचार क्रांति ला दी है. आप गरीबी रेखा के नीचे हो सकते हैं मगर आप पर मोबाइल न हो ये कोई यकीन नहीं करेगा.आप पर खाने को न हो ये सच हो सकता है मगर मोबाइल न हो, हो ही नहीं सकता. पिछले दिनों एम बोले तो मथुरा में मुरारी को जीन्स पहनाई तो उनके हाथों में मित्र लोगों ने मोबाइल भी थमा दी.भाई यह क्या मसखरी है. सुदर्शन चक्र का यह मॉडर्न वर्जन है क्या.



एम बोले तो माधुरी फ़िदा हुसैन. आजकल चुप चुप हैं. माधुरी जी फ़ॉरेन में हैं. यहाँ रह गए ज्यादातर मानुष के मगज में मॉडर्न आर्ट घुसती ही नहीं. सिर्फ नंगापन दिखता है. इनके दिमाग का यही केमिकल लोचा है. इनके साथ मगज़मारी कौन करे. बैठे बिठाये दिमाग का दही करते हैं.



एम बोले तो मॉडलिंग भाई. ये भी आजकल खूब चल रेली है. ये मॉडलगिरी वाले गांधीगिरी से सॉलिड प्रभावित हैं भाई. बोले तो वहाँ ज्यादातर देखने-दिखाने वाले लंगोटी में ही नज़र आते हैं.



एम बोले तो मतदाता, मतदाता को लुभाने-रिझाने का काम चालू हो गया है. चुनाव आने वाले हैं. मंत्री जी जुट गए है ताकि आगे भी मंत्री बने रहें. गांधी जी ने कभी चुनाव नहीं लड़ा सो गांधीगिरी से चुनाव नहीं जीते जा सकते. सबसे बड़ी बात है एम बोले तो मंदिर मस्जिद के मसले सुलगते रहें वरना मरने वालों के लिए सहायता राशि और मुरदों को लेकर सियासत कैसे होगी ? चुनाव गांधीगिरी से नहीं सियासतगिरी से जीते जाते हैं. ये बात अपुन भी समझते हैं.एम बोले तो मामू समझ के रखा है क्या ?






( व्यंग्य संग्रह 'मेरे 51 व्यंग्य' 2008 से )

एहसास

51.
ढूँढ लूँगा निदान मैं,अपनी पीड़ा का तेरे गान में
ज्योति जो एक झोंके से बुझ  गयी
वो नहीं मेरी प्रेरणा, मैं तो अबतक जीया
देख के वो दीया जो जलता रहा तूफान में.

52.

मेरा जीवन सूना है कोई साज़ नहीं है
मेरी दुनियाँ तुमसे अलग है कोई रिवाज़ नहीं है
प्यार हाँ प्यार मैं फिर भी करता हूँ
मेरा प्रेम किसी रिश्ते का मोहताज नहीं है

53.

साकी दो चार प्यालों से क्या होगा
रात को पी सुबह उतर जाएगी
पिलाओ अपनी आँखों से मुहब्बत की शराब
रात तो रात है मेरी ज़िंदगी सँवर जाएगी

54.

ज़िक्र छिड़ा जब तुम्हारा महफिल में
शुक्र है मेरी हिचकियों ने छुपा ली तुम्हारी बेवफाई
कोई इसरार तो न था,कोई छुपाव तो न था
फिर क्यों तुमने जब भी खायी कसम झूठी ही खायी
55.
बहार का मेरी ज़िंदगी से कोई ताल्लुक न रहा
तुम्हारी मनौती का मेरी बंदगी से कोई ताल्लुक न रहा
जी के क्या करेंगे अब हम,तुम्हारी आँखों का
मेरी तिशनगी से कोई ताल्लुक न रहा

56.

एक तुम्हारा साथ पा मैं
तरक्की की बुलंदियाँ पार कर जाऊँगा
एक तुम जो चलो साथ मेरे
सच कहता हूँ मैं तूफानों को कैद कर लाऊँगा
तुमसे अलग मेरी जान, मेरी जान कुछ भी
मैं मैं नहीं, हूँ भी तो मेरी पहचान कुछ भी नहीं
तुम ही तो मेरी ज़िंदगी की दौलत हो
मेरा जोश,मेरी शोहरत,मेरी ज़रूरत हो
ये दुनियाँ तो बस ख्वाब है दीवाने का
इसमे बस इक तुम ही तो हक़ीक़त हो

57.

रात सूनी, दिन
खामोश क्यूँ है
तुम मेरे पास नहीं
मुझे इतना भी होश क्यूँ है


58.


ये फ़ासला तुमसे घटाया नहीं जाता
हमारा ये दुख बंटाया नहीं जाता
हर बार ये कह के टाल दिया
किस्मत का लिखा मिटाया नहीं जाता

59.

तुम्हारा ज़िक्र, तुम्हारी याद
तुम्हारा नाम था दिल की गहराई में
यूँ हर मुकाम से हँस कर गुजर गए
हम तुम्हारी रहनुमाई में


60.

ज़िंदगी के तमाम अजूबों से हँस कर गुजर गए
जब से हैरत में डालने का वादा कर गया कोई
कुल शहर से नज़रें चुरा रहे हैं हम
जब से ख्वाब में आने का वादा कर गया कोई
ताउम्र समंदर से खाली हाथ लौटते रहे
नसीब देखिये,किनारे पे मेरे नाम मोती रख गया कोई
हम तो हिसाब-किताब में वैसे ही कमजर्फ थे
रोज़ रात तारों की गिनती क्यों मेरे नाम कर गया कोई
ज़ाहिर है वो मुझसे खफा हैं, तू भी उनका पर्दा रखना ए कासिद
कहना कल हौले से ले उनका नाम, मर गया कोई


(   काव्य संग्रह ' एहसास'  2003 से  )