The UNKNOWN

The unknown and the mysterious attracts me, and of late I've been coming across bizarre dreams of unknown people suddenly appearing in a mist and making an effort to tell me something, but somehow their words getting carried away by the wind by the time they could complete their sentence. This has been happening since several days.
This has drawn me to scribble their torn messages so that that a story line can be formed.

There have been times people have asked me why I have named the God and Goddess of Love in LOVE AND LIFE IN A CHANGING CITY, Brief and Panty. Well, I've told them that's my attitude, my lifestyle. Attitude to thing unconventionally !!

Life is a gift , and you only have to see it through the right lens. It was a wonderful experience to be a part of a humble mixture of people from so many communities. 

There I read a poem on Inter-faith unity at the Regency Maple Banquet Hall supported by Turkish-Dialogue Cultural Center. Thank you Mr Mourad of TDCC & Imran Zaki, Faces

Allnes in Oneness

No men are unequal

For there is only one sky.        

Roofed under it, you and I breathe the same air

Dressed in whichever religious clothes we may be.

The same sun shines on you

And the same stars glimmer for me too.

My feet walk over the same soil as yours

And the water which feeds my thirst feeds yours too.

The cold winter touches you as much as it touches me

And the warm summer air brushes past me too.

Your heart boasts of the same colour as mine

For there is only one colour, the colour of blood

And clothed by its redness we share the same language

The universal language of love.

No men are enemies

For there is only one sky.        

Roofed under it, you and I breathe the same air

Dressed in whichever religious clothes we may be.

My new novel No New Mail but Mail from a New Girl. 
Wow!! Isn't it lovely? It's like a new baby you are holding in your arms!  You know, it takes months and months of systematic hard work (which I, of course enjoy) to get a book completed. It's out in e-book form. You may click on the link below, read the sample chapters 1 and 2 and if you like the story so far, you may but it. It's out in Amazon worldwide.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/New-Mail-but-Girl-ebook/dp/B00AWR72GQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1357411044&sr=1-1

The second day of AKLF saw a host of interesting back-to-back events. It began by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, British journalist & writer speaking to Sujata Sen and Reba Som about her experience from her book Food Stories: Stirring Moments.
This was followed by Transgressions: Essaying the New in Indian Films with filmmakers Shyam Benegal, Onir, actor Dhritiman Chaterji and film critic Mira Hashmi.
book launch of Shobha De's Sethji followed with chief guest Rakhi Sarkar and with interaction with Rita Bhimani.
Afternoon saw a host of panelists in conversation with Urvashi Butolia, touching on topic of Tomorrow and the Written Word. They touched on topics of finding a publisher, what a publisher wants and what a writer should write.
Evening brought William Dalrymple too talk on his Return of a King, the First Afghan War told through the lives of unforgettable characters.
Lastly, it was the announcement of winner and presentation of the 2013 prize by Tibor Jones South Asia Prize Avni Doshi received the prize for her manuscript, Girl in White Cotton.

Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival, Jan. 9-13, 2013 began their festival with the first day with a cinemagic: A TRIBUTE TO A CENTURY OF INDIAN CINEMA where an exhibition on An Enchanted Look at Hindi Cinema Through the Priya Paul Collection. This was followed by A Filmmakers Forum and finally Inauguration Ceremony of AKLF 2013 at the historical Victoria Memorial. The inauguration was done by Hon. Governor M. K. Narayanan. This was followed by keynote address by eminent filmmaker Shyam Benegal.
The second day seems to be an exiciting day for writers with several book launches. The day has started and I'm off to Rosewood, the banquet hall in Park Hotel for interesting back-to-back events!

I waited. Yes I did. For  some news to put here in the new year. The outpourings in the shape of the first few words of 2013. I was in my teaching centre falling into a day-dream. And then it happened...
The screen of my cell-phone showed the name of Kulpreet Yadav as the cell woke up from its New Year's slumber. "Mo Tejani is no more!" The shell-shocking news caught my voice unawares. Kulpreet went on to say that our writer friend had succumbed to a massive heart attack at 2.30 am on 1st January.
I rushed home, my heart bursting with the news. I wanted to share this with the others. The group message box in Fb showed some waiting text to be read. Andrew Bond, one of our writer friends had already put up the sad news.
We shared the sad music of our hearts by filling the vessel called Mo with our tears. However, Mo's personality was so endless that our tears were ashamed as it failed to reach the brim to overflow. Mo was filled with humour. And his life always gifted him with sudden surprise risks at most bends.
Each and every word that we exchanged in the message box were insufficient to Mo's sky-reaching personality. Now I realize that each and every moment of life is to be cherished. This realization came this time from our departed friend, Mo. Funeral flowers were given from us by one of our writer friends residing in Chiang Mai.
Here is a tribute to Mo in the shape of a poem from all of us the AP Writers community.

Mo, the Humorous Bomb

A humorous bomb is a bomb

which is built within you from the moment you are born.

And when a storm from Uganda attacked you

this bomb kept you alive

because it was fireproof

it was bloodproof.

It gave you courage, this bomb

it confidenced you, this bomb

it united you, this bomb

it loved you, this bomb.

This bomb

became your passport

your beloved     your friend

your son    your daughter

your father    your mother.

This bomb made you sing

it made you dance

it made you play.

And you told Idi Amin,

“You may go to hell.

I have my humour

a stronger bomb

and you cannot destroy me.”

And with your bomb of humour,

you united the people around you

you got us drunk with your humour.

We laughed aloud

danced with funny caps

and cartoon sunglasses.

We tapped our feet in your rhythm.

We became you

because you became us

with your love.

YOU HUMOROUS BOMB!!