Covid and Dengue are on the rise again. Arindam’s evocative verse, inspired by Baul, celebrates love, life and longevity – an exclusive for Different Truths.

Lashed by the winds, I am God’s madcap,
Strumming and singing of love and loss –
In the flute of the Bansidhar, Yamuna
Danced with glee; little did it know that
 
He reigned in and silenced the storms,
To hear the chimes of Radhika’s
Payal; the swish of her billowing
Ghagra and her suppressed giggles.
 
Like a playful child, I snatched and tore
A handful of stars from the sky,
And painted your twilight –
With cotton clouds and chirping birds,
 
In their beaks were the blushing
Sun, a silent prayer
For the hospitalised, gasping Earthlings
To heal and smile and sing songs.
 
I am a dancing Baul, God’s madcap,
Singing of love and loss, a boatman,
Haggling Krishna for the gold of his ear
For ferrying Radhika across.

Picture design by Anumita Roy, Different Truths

Arindam Roy

Arindam Roy has over four decades of experience in various newsrooms of renowned media houses. He is the Founder, Publishing Director, Editor-in-Chief of Different Truths, and Kavya Kumbh Publishing Consultant (KKPC). He has co-authored ten chapters in six Coffee Table Books (CTBs) of national and international repute and is the sole author of four forthcoming CTBs (Times Group). He has also published four international poetry anthologies as the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief, participated in several poetry and literary festivals, and won awards and accolades. Arindam co-authored the novel Rivers Run Back with an American writer. He stays in Bangalore and Prayagraj.

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