The City Girl

Nobody really realizes, until it hits them and there's nowhere left to run. It starts with the boredom. When the thought of compiling another set of words into a paragraph or prose section that makes sense begins to seem like a huge task, or when you simply cannot make sense of all the words that are flashing through your head. So fast, that you feel like reaching out and grabbing one, just so you could read it and take comfort in the feeling that you know it, but the horror strikes when you realize you don't really want to. For the longest time, I tried to deny the feeling of being bored and burdened by the thought of my own words. I'd sit to write because a thought crossed my mind and I knew if I wrote it down, I'd get to keep it, save it even. But the words just wouldn't come. Typing started to seem futile. So I tried to jot down everything on pen and paper. It would seem that the block doesn't discriminate between scented parchments combined w...

As I look around at my lovely classmates I realize there's so much to be noticed. I'm done winning at chess once (losing twice) against the CPU, I'm done selecting dresses for my cart and then emptying it (because too many clothes, too little space already), solved a couple sudoku puzzles, listened to my favourite playlist already (the second loop going on). It is only then that I look up to see the prof still at it, trying really hard to get theory into our brains (a theory that has nothing to do with our base). Good effort, vague intentions all around. All of us tried to listen and gave up, he tried to teach and gave up. There's a pigeon outside the classroom, I can hear him cooing better than our prof croaking.  Sometime in the middle I jotted down the contacts of two field related institutions (placement season), checked the news on Google notifications (great developments, too far from us). There is SO much we could be doing right now. A movie, cooking, tr...

To the city that doesn't change. To the city that is home, to one that calls out to you in the deepest of dreams... There's no pace here. The only one you set is the one you were meant to. When I hear songs of lost times and feelings...of days gone by and of loves I crossed paths with and nights without, it is you that I think of. Home. Never will you find yourself lost, for every lane leads you to your goal. Even if it is an undecided one. Abandoned mansions, overgrown parks, temples in the nooks and mosques on the highway. Of trees that live on and landmarks every Calcattan knows... There is a place in the east that many know of and very few have lived with. You see Kolkata isn't a place you live in. It becomes one with you and yourself. There is no end to the many lanes you lost yourself in while searching for others. The search never ends and therefore no hope is lost. Every turn is a source of excitement and yet the familiarity sets in. There is a pattern to it ...

I wanted to walk to the moon and back For you I wanted to hold your hand in my little palm And walk across the shore in some foreign land I wanted to take a ferry to some distant place with distant dreams and you beside me I wanted to carry your hopes and sorrows and dreams and share them with the world, so they could see You. I wanted to tell you...so many things So many stories, so many tales Of ice cream cones and starry nights and winter breezes and olden sights I wanted to feel you, touch you See you grow. I wanted to support you when you needed me and watch you unfold. I want... I wanted... you. I wanted to go to that movie you said you'd hated but I loved so much I wanted to catch that bus you promised we would but never got on. I wanted to roam around the streets aimlessly and hear you complain again I wanted to have those fights over a call that I thought were necessary and you knew were lame. We've made history together and I want ...

She is an oxymoron Sometimes she appears like the evening breeze... Soothing, flowing, light and fluffy Passes you by with a subtle touch and a sly grin Lifts your spirits and makes you smile Other times she could be a wild storm Windy with thunder in her eyes and lightning in her movements Like a dark cloud descending or a strong gale blowing It's almost as if someone flipped a coin She turns from a mellow cat to an angry striving tigress in seconds She...is an oxymoron Sometimes I find myself wanting to simply lose myself in those eyes... Those pools of wonder...another world altogether Other times I'm scared by the rampant rage in them... The raw hunger...the need to be more Sometimes I feel like I've caught up to her, you know? Like I've made it to the top of the mountain... Conquered what I thought I couldn't It is then that she turns and suddenly I'm  lost She becomes this force of nature... ...

You see her wild, unruly, clumsy, with a mind of her own and you think to yourself, "She is free. She is fun. She could be tamed." Every strong female character ever has been depicted as the bitch, the wild horse, the vamp or maybe the headstrong one. Of course, there is a history, of course, there is pain there. But does that mean you coming into her life would magically erase all her difficulties and problems? Did you wait to ask whether she even wanted your help? Stop a minute. Watch. She's got this. She had got this before you came and she will continue to after you've moved past her. There is magic at work here, a strong aura that you don't notice. You saw the sparkle in her eyes, but do you see the bullets she dodged and managed to smile? Oh, you'd fall for that smile any day, but did you know the secrets behind the same? Sometimes she doesn't need that advice. Sometimes you could just listen. Yes, she wants you. No, she...

I have been fidgety the whole way from the movie hall to home; my fingers absolutely itching to jot down this piece.                              Saand Ki Aankh raised some questions and answered some, sparked some fires and doused some, made certain points and created new perspectives. Now before you say this is too much thought into a movie, just indulge me for a moment, yeah?    480 × 260          In the recent decade its been seen that there's a significant rise in the number of female children studying and scoring better than boys in schools, at competitive exams and so on. Why, though? Saand Ki Aankh answers this complex question with a simple thought. There is a scene where the boys of the Tomar family are offered to learn shooting for better job opportunities. "Dr. Sahab" offers them mangoes as rewards for every shot that hits the "bull's eye" a.k.a....

University life is happening, fast and very very blurry at times. Things happen and assignments make you feel like a useless pile of goo or you meet new people and suddenly your circle is bigger than you can handle.                      Soon you muddle up something and look upon yourself from a distance thinking, "How exactly did I get here?" I'll tell you how.  You thought you could do this. It was just socializing after all. How could it hurt to know a few more people, get engaged in a  few more activities, join a few more clubs, hangout a liiiiittle bit more.                          Go through that again, before you scroll further. I've done all of this and more, slipped as far as I could and tried to find my way back. I'm probably exactly where you are. (Especially if you're still reading through this XD) My chance to Getaway... ...

This post is for all the writers out there. This is a little piece of me that I'm sure sometime or the other you have found in yourself. No matter where you are, whether you are lost or not in life, whether you're still writing or not, whether you gain appreciation or not, whether you show your pieces to others or not, whether you overcame your blocks or not... this is for you, my dear writer . 1. You look up and you see more than what is : It's hard to explain, but you know exactly what I mean. You look at a fallen leaf and start thinking about fall and all your memories attached to it and then in no time have you formed prose or a poem in your mind to describe exactly what you feel. 2. It's easy to get stuck: Sometimes, you just can't let go of that view of the ocean, or that place you went to 5 years ago with your friends, or that dish you tasted the last time you visited your favourite restaurant and so on. You get stuck of the idea of something, o...

I just realized...we're already here. "All those days watching from the windows All those years outside looking in All that time never even knowing Just how blind I've been Now I'm here blinking in the starlight Now I'm here suddenly I see Standing here it's all so clear I'm where I'm meant to be And at last I see the light And it's like the fog has lifted And at last I see the light And it's like the sky is new And it's warm and real and bright And the world has somehow shifted All at once everything looks different Now that I see you" I thought graduating was fun... Post Graduation is a different ball game altogether We struggle, we sing, we hang, we crib, we complete assignments late into the night and wake up with hangovers after post-exam house parties. Deepankar's "chal, kuch fun karte hain" ("Come, let's do something fun") has become our motto in life. No matter how ti...

Have you been to Mumbai during the monsoons? If you haven't, good for you. If you have... poor you, I feel you. Dates are supposed to be happy-happy for all. You're supposed to pick a good location that is comfortable for both you and your date and then pray to God that everything goes right. This is not what happened. Ashish the Great asked out my roomie Chaynika on a date on a day we were all sure it was gonna rain for a long long time. Good for them though, right? I was pretty down from all the goings on that day and came back to our rooms to find Chaynika going around like a whirlwind, trying to tuck her hair in place, adjusting her top, fidgeting way too much. It was actually amusing to see her go about cribbing how Ashish should have picked another day, hypocritically blushing and smiling to herself from time to time as she thought about him. They were already an hour or so late for their date because it was pouring cats and dogs. We realized that the ...

Here I am, sitting in a rented room in Mumbai city, sipping black coffee with my friends. It's not even been a month at TISS and I feel like Mumbai was meant to be. TISS culture is unique. I've met people from too many backgrounds, various age groups and probably all states and a few other nationalities. TISS is laid back and on point at the same time. Lectures, meetings, journals on one hand... adda with chai-tapri, late-night movies and on-campus hangout spots on the other Its all about debates, classes and rushing at day-time, while things switch to lazy walks, silent library chats and take out cravings by nighttime. If you're the nerdy kind that likes to play sports, you'll find your place here. If you're the extrovert that likes a long lazy afternoon sometimes, you'll find your place here. Even if you're the ambivert who doesn't know where he/she belongs, TISS will feel like home to you. Of all the things and experiences that TISS ha...

On the 28 th of October, 2017, the whole third-year honors batch of the Geography Department set out for our field trip to Meghalaya. We had been planning our 10 days trip for months already and had had to postpone it once because of the Assam floods that had occurred earlier that year. Living Root Bridge Everybody was pumped up and ready to leave. It wasn’t just a field trip for us, it was going to be one of the most important batch trips ever and every single one of us knew that. Umiam Lake Sharing Birthdays on a Field Trip Our trip to Shillong was eventful enough since the beginning, but it was extra special to me. You see, my birthday was on the 30 th of October and one of our professors, Mrs. Kumam had hers on the 4 th of November; both of which were celebrated on the trip itself. We started off with a bang! The day we reached, we weren’t really allowed to rest. Strict orders were given out that all girls were supposed to be ready and out within 20...