i met s quite unexpectedly. not unexpectedly when it happened but curious that he should be there, in hyderabad. he has had roots sent down here by the mothers side of his family. so he has memories and my neighbourhood, he knew better than me. which was as it should be because i was only meeting him for an hour max and it didnt make sense for both of us to know nothing about where to hang.
a city very close to his heart, he said. and not just because it was where he was born and in which he became conscious of his surroundings. he liked the city now, all modern and forward looking and frenetic and founded on retail, growing on servicing. thats the best part he said, in the parking of some departmental store. a valet had just parked his car around, and by the time he'd done that, s came out to declare no shrooms, so no go. leaving now then. the valet pulls the car back out. s says that is the best part. there is always someone to take care of these things for you. cal would take ages to get up to that standard. anyhow, we carried on and went to this other dept store, famous erstwhile as trinetra. his family, right from childhood these memories were, would always pick up all their provisions from this shop. you just called them with the list and theyd have it sent home. the shop has been taken over by this retail grocery chain, and he didnt know where to look for what although they did have the said fungus. i asked s where them days had disappeared, rhetorically. he shrugged, said its all gone.
finally we had icecreams and discussed the travesty of law in mamata's bengal.
ginsberg's minds
they still howl and are dragged still
through the alleys and lanes
where stars fall dead
ash on streets paved with gold
sickly thick grimy yellow
screaming in a hunger
that died long ago
and resurrected the vampire
of a damned romance dead beat
rent not by the ecstasy of light
but cut up in anxiety
full-blooded into the battle rushing
to come back bleeding
it stains the whites of their eyes
and sleepless still they die fighting
a city very close to his heart, he said. and not just because it was where he was born and in which he became conscious of his surroundings. he liked the city now, all modern and forward looking and frenetic and founded on retail, growing on servicing. thats the best part he said, in the parking of some departmental store. a valet had just parked his car around, and by the time he'd done that, s came out to declare no shrooms, so no go. leaving now then. the valet pulls the car back out. s says that is the best part. there is always someone to take care of these things for you. cal would take ages to get up to that standard. anyhow, we carried on and went to this other dept store, famous erstwhile as trinetra. his family, right from childhood these memories were, would always pick up all their provisions from this shop. you just called them with the list and theyd have it sent home. the shop has been taken over by this retail grocery chain, and he didnt know where to look for what although they did have the said fungus. i asked s where them days had disappeared, rhetorically. he shrugged, said its all gone.
finally we had icecreams and discussed the travesty of law in mamata's bengal.
ginsberg's minds
they still howl and are dragged still
through the alleys and lanes
where stars fall dead
ash on streets paved with gold
sickly thick grimy yellow
screaming in a hunger
that died long ago
and resurrected the vampire
of a damned romance dead beat
rent not by the ecstasy of light
but cut up in anxiety
full-blooded into the battle rushing
to come back bleeding
it stains the whites of their eyes
and sleepless still they die fighting
