Denied... but not Defeat.... हम होंगे कामयाब एक दिन

Last Thursday, the Central Government of India, in an affidavit filed in response to petition seeking to recognise same-sex marriages, stated that “Living together as partners and having sexual relationship by same-sex individuals is not comparable with the Indian family unit concept of a husband, a wife and children which necessarily presuppose a biological man as a ‘husband’, a biological woman as a ‘wife’ and the children born out of the union between the two,” [source: The Hindu].

This response, though  disheartening, comes as no surprise. And I wouldn’t be wrong if o said that this is an expected response, not just from the present government. There would be a similar response from any other government of the country. 

We live in a country that’s mostly conservative, that still holds on to its traditional values. Religion has always been a big factor of the country’s political landscape, and has been used as a pawn by all parties to further their agenda. And in such a conservative climate, no party would want to disturb the concept of marriage and family. Let’s face it, there’s hardly any representation from the LGBTQ community in governance, and the community doesn’t form a big part of any political party’s agenda, thus forever relegated to fringe of society. Hence their response comes as no surprise. In fact, this was a response that would have been expected.

This is a setback, but not a step back. The message maybe disappointing but there’s no hope lost in it. Though there may be a vast majority of those who are enraged and disheartened with this response, but this is not end. After all “कोशिश करने वालों की हार नहीं होती” [source: Harivansh Rai Bachan]. This setback can only be a step back if we refuse to learn from it.

If we look beyond gender, marriage is a coming together of two souls, a union between two consenting adults, who wish to enter, to commit to each other, till death do them apart. So if two consenting adults want to enter to a commitment, why should the gender of the two party matter? Why let age old archaic views dictate how we perceive the concept of marriage and family. A child from the union can always be through surrogacy and adoption, and not necessarily through consummation of the marriage. 

You may argue that gay men can’t stay committed to one partner. Many seek out multiple partners. This though true, but is not true just for gay men. This holds true for all the male species. Man by nature would always seek out multiple partners in order to spread its species. So how many straight men, in a committed relationship, have strayed from their commitment? Have managed to keep it all in their pants?

Marriage is a sacred commitment between two consenting adults. But this sanctity is lost when the two people being bound don’t really consent to the marriage. Rather they are coerced, even forced, into a bond they do not consent to, because of family and societal pressure. And  to add to it, the government also wants to be part of dictating who one should marry. So in the end the marriage is not out of consent but due to pressure leading to broken people, loveless relationships. broken homes , broken marriages, broken families, infidelity, and even divorces.

A LGBTQ youth seeks acceptance, normalcy, a way out of the confusion that engulfs them. They want someone to hear them out, accept them for who they are, and not  treat them as a freak of nature, an abnormality, someone shunned and made fun of, ostracised to the fringe of society. 

Legalising same-sex marriage is a symbol of acceptance, a step towards normalcy, a step toward being treated like everyone, an opportunity for one to choose who they love and who they want to be with. If they want to bind themselves for the rest of their lives, who are we to oppose to what love has brought together no man can put asunder.

In an ever changing world, where the concept of love, relationship and marriage have changed and adapted with time, holding on to age old notions and traditions will only have us steps behind time.

Disdain and anger is not the right way to react to this response. All is not lost. The only way thing will change if we continue to strive to educate people, to change their mindset and clear the misconception that block their mind. This ain’t going to be easy, and May event take a lot of time and energy. There maybe times when these effort may not bear fruits that they should, not give the results that’s expected, but continuous perseverance will certainly bring about a change, a change in mindset, a broader perception of tradition, and most importantly an acceptance. So we can’t give up, we can never give up. It is only through educating people, making our voices heard, taking active part in governance, will we be able to effect the change we want to see in the world. 

So through all the setbacks one can learn and come back. So denial of a right to marriage maybe a setback but it isn’t defeat. We can never give up till the fat lady sings, it’s never over until we say it’s over. 

हम qहोंगे कामयाब, हम होंगे कामयाब 

हम होंगे कामयाब एक दिन 

हो हो मन में है विश्वास 

पूरा है विश्वास 

हम होंगे कामयाब एक दिन

Night Walker

As I step out of my building and on to the driveway of my complex, a cold winter chill is there to greet me. A little strange for it to be February and there’s still a nip in the air. Cuddle weather, I call it, but there’s no one to cuddle up with, except there’s no one to cuddle to, except for Max, my cuddle pillow.

I continue to walk along, a night Walker, not the GoT kind. I pass a couple on a clandestine night out, trying to make most of the darkness and scarcity of people on the street, or people just hurrying after calling it a night. I try to move my gaze as their lips meet, trying not to be a voyeur of sorts to their passion play.

As I continue the air smells high as I pass by a group high on grass and liquor. They lift their heads and stare my way, their eyes glazed and blurry. I wonder what would I look like in their dazed psychedelic world? Would I be a stranger in monochrome, or would I be blob of colours in their high world.

Dogs stare me down as I pass their my way, wondering if they scare me or should I be scared by them? Isn’t that one and the same? Maybe a whiff of the air has scrambled my brains? Who’s to tell? Getting high on secondhand smoke. I pass them, going around them as they continue to give me the stare down, some starting to wag their tail in recognition. But they don’t make any move towards me and let me pass them.

And so I continue my walk. There are kids hanging around trying to be cool, taking videos as they ride bikes, smoking cigarettes, trying to be the cool kids who are permitted to hang around late in to the night. A glance at them makes you feel old.

There a people walking their pets, or is the pets walking their people? Something we may never ever know! They are holding canes in their hand to keep those pesky strays at bay. But then there are some for whom these pets are their wingman. Very often, once the job is done these poor critters are forgotten and are left to fend themselves.

And as you walk down I see a poster that leaves you with an indifferent feeling, that leaves you fuming at the irony at human. In a year where people have lost their jobs, homes, loved ones, we want funds to build a monuments to the Gods. Isn’t it ironic that we want to put roof over the head of God many of fellow human don’t have one over their head. When will we learn that the gods, whichever name we call them,has long since shunned these opulently vulgar display of devotion. They shunned these for humbler abode, like the hearts and homes of the humble.

This poster seemed to evoke a bitter feeling in me. And as I continued to walk through the night, my mind seemed to be lost in thoughts, a bit disturbed, a bit distracted, a bit distant from all the happenings around, wondering if life would come out unscathed, with all the craziness happening around.

As I walked, Lucky Ali crooned in my ears, trying to calm a lost person who walked aimlessly that night, a reflection of the way life felt. Being so lost in thought I didn’t quite realise where I was going. But my legs, on autopilot  brought me back, to the enterance of the building this bringing an end to a night walk of this nightwalker!!!

Puppets on a String

Said Shakespeare many long years ago

“That all world’s a stage 

An all people are actors”

I am not sure if I got that right

But I am sure by now you’ve got the gist

But what if we weren’t actors

And instead of actors we were just puppets 

With our strings in the those who wield 

The powers to be

Making us look left when we should right

Closing our eyes when could with them being open

Shutting our hears and our mind

Making us literally the monkeys of Gandhiji

Giving a new mean meaning to 

See no evil, speak no evil, hear no evil, think evil

Taking advantage of our senses blocked

They got us clapping hands, banging plates, lighting candles 

For those who stood at frontline combatting an unseen enemy 

But of data of those warriors who lost their lives

They had none

They got us to believe they wanted justice a dead soul 

But they didn’t care about the living ones

Or that numbers were rapidly increasing

They made you feel that mental illness doesn’t exist

And is a taboo especially for a healthy man to have it

They made us believe that laws they made were for those who benefitted 

But when then ones who benefited 

Weren’t the ones who it was directly meant for 

And the one that it was directly meant for

Stood against it cause they felt they would face more harm than benefitting from it

So they called them anti national, tukde-tukde, khalistanis

And then when it got leaked that top secret information got leaked

For a lowly television rating

They tried to divert attention to a television series

That they felt hurt religious sentiments 

And showed of a state in bad light

When the state has already been stained

With a blood of an innocent

Who raped and cremated 

But still no justice given, no lesson learned

A stain for ever to remain

And then you have a faux feminist 

Who puts herself on the top of a list

While the rest are B-list and anti national

And she’s the reigning queen

Of an industry filled of druggies

If that’s not all

They make you  feel that a place of worship

Built on the blood of thousands

Is what will bring unity

And therefore ask for donation in the name of the one for whom it’s built

When I am sure he would want to reside ins such a unholy place

But still they put up posters ans ask for donations

Of people who have lost their job, loved one

The reason for living.

And could go on and list more

How that great puppeteer moves the strings

To get his puppets to the things

That benefit and please him

But for now, I’ll say no more

Cause you think of me a silly bore

So for now all o can say

“All the world is a stage

And we just puppets, puppets on a string!”

In the Shadows... No More

I don’t stand in the shadow

I refuse to see the world in black and white

II wish to see the world in its true colours

I shine in the light of my own

Not to be overshadowed by others

Never to overshadow others

I am not afraid to be seen for who I am

Cause this is who I am... this is me

Imperfect and broken, perfectly imperfect 

Constantly learning

Constantly adapting 

Constantly growing

I am only human, and I have my missteps

But I learn from my mistakes

I learn from my experiences

Giving respect where respect is due

Marching to the beats of my own drum

Never taking credit that’s not mine

Giving credit where credit is due

And letting what I do speak for itself

I refuse to stand in the shadows

I stand in the light my own!!!!

.

No Place to Mate

They looked high

They looked low

But there was nowhere they could go

To have a clandestine meeting

It was time to procreate

And he was horny as hell

But there was no place they could do the deed

Till the found a place that fit their need

So he huffed and he puffed

And showed her all that she wanted to see

)It’s not what your thinking

You’re minds quite dirty)

She finally was impressed 

And let him progress

Cause time was the best

But then someone came along

After hearing  all the sound 

which they were making

Again, May I  interject

It’s not the sound you are thinking

So they had to fly away

But they returned 

When the coast was clear

To continue what they had started 

Alas, once again, it was not meant to be

They had abort what they started

And so it went on, for the third and fourth time

Till he finally interjected from being dejected

There’s no place to mate

In this city of late

Especially if you’re a pigeon!!!

Two Friends and an Activa - A City to Discover

Two Friends set out on a trip

On a trusted Activa

To discover the city

Take in the sights and sound of it

One all excited

While the other nervous

Excited cause he had never seen 

the city like this

He had not really seen the city

The other nervous 

Cause he was never driven so far before

But still they gung-ho to take on the trip

So after quick of milk and coffee

(who had what is for you to decide)

So they rode the highway 

Trying to outrace the sun as it rose in the sky

Their first stop was an area 

where horses raced

While on the other side 

Lay the a holy place in the midst of the sea

Where men were trying to 

Reclaim land from the sea

They took in the sight and clicked pics

Then they rode up the road

Where most runners

Call their bette noire

Passing a structure 

that stood out like a sore thumb 

Till  they came to beach that mostly empty 

They walked casually on the sand

Admiring the vastness of the  endless sea

That lay in front of them

Boats bobbed leisurely with the waves

That broke as they reached the shore

They rode down the Queens Necklace

That was lit in a different way

They then stopped at the end point

Where running groups usually gathered 

A carnival like atmosphere 

That was now mostly bare

As scare of the virus hung there

By then they had rode for quite the while

And their stomach began to growl

For the  breakfast they had yet to have 

So they rode to the local Irani place

And had some kheema gotala and Burji pav

And a cup of tea and coffee

Again it’s for you to decide who had what

They then went to the Gate way 

And stood there by the hotel 

That was once under siege 

By now the nervous one grew confident 

And there was so much of his life

He wanted to share

He wanted him to see

So he pointed out to him

The college which he went to

The church he was baptised in

The school that he attended

The house where he lived

Stopping in between by bakery

Where they picked up 

Kahari, Danishes, Croissants and Nankatai

And if that wasn’t enough

He took him to the Church on the Mount

And the Fort by the sea

Which unfortunately closed 

at that time of the day

So they prayed and had an ice cream

And left from there

They said they would be back 12

But now it was three

They had rode all morning

And now it was almost evening

Their knee felt sore

Their butt numb

But in the end they were happy

Cause one got to see the city

The other got over his fears

And was able to share

A huge piece of his life

And he was happy he could do it

So in they end they were contented

Cause they were able to do something 

They had not done before

And share moments in the beautiful 

Maximum City!!!

The Whistling Tune

He sat at his work desk

All gloomy and blue

Cause nothing seemed to go his way

And he didn’t know what to do

It all seemed so normal

Since Work From Home Began

He longed to be anywhere but behind his desk

When low and behold he heard a sound 

That left him quite stunned 

A whistling tune 

that was melodious to the ears

He looked high 

He looked low

He searched for it here and there

For that whistling sound

Felt like it was calling to him

To follow it somewhere 

He looked at others to see if they heard

But that sweet whistling sound 

was only for his ears

So he put on his shoes

And followed it on

Cause that sweet whistling sound

Had hypnotised him somehow

So ran in the direction

He thought it came

He followed it high and he followed

He followed it for miles

But he couldn’t find 

where the whistling came from 

Till he came to a park 

Where he felt most at  home

As he ran through the park

He realised the whistling came from the trees 

From the rustling of their leaves

That swayed in the breeze

The deer peered 

And the monkeys stared 

He didn’t really cared

Like the mice following the piper

He followed the whistling tune

And he followed the tune

He forgot his cares

And felt light as a feather

He ran through the woods

Whistling the tune that he heard

Then the whistling led him back 

To the place it all started

And just as he heard it

In the same way it ended

But Leaving him 

refreshed, rejuvenated and joyous!