Cyclone Aila hits West Bengal, Kolkata

Photo courtesy CNN IBN

Aila hit Kolkata, 24 Parganas south around 11 am with winds 100 -120 kms per hour. Trapped as we were at work...while Aila created havoc. There was a brief lull around 5:30, where we could exit and make our way home through roads turned green from branches and leaves strewn and crushed under wheels. Uprooted posts, torn wires and hoardings by the wayside and a marked absence of public buses and autos...we were the lucky ones. Many weren't so. Reports are still coming in of the number of dead and injured.

And although the storm has apparently moved away from Kolkata, its still extremely blustery outside and heavy rains expected.

Cyclone Aila pounds Orissa, West Bengal

Coastal Orissa badly hit by cyclonic storm

Aila takes away monsoon rain from peninsular region

Post Poll Scenario: Silence

There is a total silence all around. Even the post poll analysis (explaning away of the loss as well as the jubiliation of winning) seems to be muted and half hearted .. on both sides.

A furious, enormous, all consuming tug of war was on...straining and draining all - party workers & bosses, by standers, aam junta et al, with no one was willing to cede an inch. And then yesterday, it was all over. One side found themselves dragged accross the dividing line and the other - flat on their back, rope in their hands ... won!

Sunday will then be spent in quiet contemplation as the realisation of loss and win sinks in.

Election Eve

Campaigning reached fever pitch over the weekend. The two main parties started plastering the city with gory pictures of burnt and cut bodies each claiming as the other's handiwork. Meetings and rallies were doubled or perhaps tripled.

On Saturday (temperature 41.8) as we whizzed down DH road entered and exited several airwaves: 1st a CPM meet blaring about "Bicchinotabadi (separatist) politics" and while I could wondered if Bengal was to be partitioned once again and how - west west bengal and east west bengal or north west bengal and south west bengal, we hit TMC air space - with Nandigram and Singur and into another left party meet (couldn't see the party banner -- we were hurtling past) shouting about the merits of a certain "netri" - who else but mamati di. A quick stop to unload a passenger and we had an earful of "cows smuggled in from bangladesh and about a cow abbatoir" - BJP meet and lastly (for that stretch) a meet of Gramin Chikitsak Samiti who were going on and on about a healthy government prosob (delivery) kora.

More of the same on Sunday -- which was HOTTER. And this time, at least one party felt the heat too. They had apparently set up a meeting around 10:00am at Lake Market but seeing no takers and probably all half dead with sun strokes, departed, flags, chairs, podium, mikes and all after only half an hour or so!!

And then the skies opened poured down on everyone's meeting and rallies as the deadline for campaigning came up on Monday afternoon. (I think even the party workers were secretly relieved).

Today has been very pleasant. It rained and rained and rained. Its nice and cool now - atleast 10 to 12 degrees cooler. And it has been a relief. Only the normal city noises - cars and buses and horns and general buzz of 9 million residents ... but those are constant fixtures and dont count. No loudspeakers, no michils, no rallies and no new hoardings. Ah! till tomorrow, these 48 hours will be the quitest for a very long time...perhaps for the next 5 years - since normally there is atleast a couple of orators on any given day in Kolkata blaring about something or the other.

More and more buses went off the road on "election duty". That meant general harrassment for commuters...but we are used to cramming into ancient boxes on wheels (something like the cramming into telephone booth fad of ancient times). Many were secretly thankful of the lesser number of buses: They could lead early from work. No seriously, many have had to face this problem today and many are still stuck at bus stops. However, the weather is now helping to somewhat smoothen the wait.

But I think we are going to miss all the crazy hoopla surrounding the elections - all other countries and perhaps even those in rest of India pales at our theatrics! We are going to miss the news bulletins of presiding officers caught skulking off (after poll hours) with the electronic voting machines and the strange tale of some 100 odd officials being transported somewhere on poll duty and all of a sudden they were off loaded from the bus which then zoomed off and these stranded officials blocked the road and created a ruckus!!

We vote tomorrow - in this final and last stage of voting - and hope that this will be the last session for these elections and there will be no need for re-polls.

A brief respite

No this photo isn't of today. It was not clicked by me,

and most certainly its not even of Kolkata. But it is one

I kept looking at for cool comfort when things were

getting UNbearable.

At last. Our collective wait is over (if only for about half an hour). Mercury touched 42 degrees and was soaring. Humidity to boot. And to make matters really ANNOYING, skies were over cast since morning. Not a leaf stirred. And then suddenly, when we were wrapping up at work, homewards bound, a tremendous nor'wester swept in. Then came the rains. Crazy winds and fantastic lightening. So we were stuck. On top of that there was a rush to close windows before the panes shattered. So not only were we stuck, we were stuck indoors with the windows closed and all the hot air trapped in.

Despite our plans of leaving dot at 5.30 - many buses have gone off the roads (something to do with elections - not very sure what though) - we left much later. The narrow roads were rendered narrower because sides were filled with water leaving a narrow - one man -sorry - make that one person strip in the middle. The rickshaws, bikes came whizzing past on either side with all of us pedestrians walking through the centre, splashing us from left and right. And all the way to the bus stop, brilliant flashes lit the sky and scared me witless.

But at the end of the road, there was a welcome sight! A couple frying HOT piyanjis, phuluris and aloo chop. Ah! Just the thing in the cool and pleasant weather.

Waiting for the rains

Sight for several million pairs of sore eyes...alas, not in Kolkata.

Not yet, but soon - hopefully

Kakdip and back...

Had to go to Kakdip yesterday (on work)... and within half an

hour we were able to leave planet polluto behind and
hit the long and not so narrow road...

Drink in the greenery

Reach our destination, meetings, agenda, action plans, good homely
lunch, power cuts without the sweat and grime....and leave

with one last look at the still ponds

Stop by the sunflowers

Wave goodbye to Kakdip bashis


and there she was larger than life...
about to step into a scum filled pond....
to bring us back to reality...



Omnipresent Didi

Mukul....Monay Poraychey?

...Sonar Kella?

Yesterday was Satyajit Ray's 88th Birth anniversary. Tai...his life and times and films was the main story on television yesterday. And a special treat in store: Sonar Kella. I first heard of it as a little girl, in Assam from a friend who had seen it on a recent trip to Kolkata. And what stayed with me was the magic thrill of the deep whisper "Mukul...monay porayche? Sonar Kella".

Years later, when I finally did get to see the film, I think I wept for joy. And each subsequent time, I have lingered over, loved and lapped up every full stop comma, characters, dialogues! And I can say with a lot of confidence that I am not the only one. There was this legendary comedian Louis de Feunes - star of the Gendarme series. My prof at Ecole De Roche told our class that "Le Gendarme" on it's release was seen by 90% of France. Only the very young and the very old and infirm didn't. I think Sonar Kella would be comparable (among bengalis that is). This might not be Ray's best work, however, it has a special special place that cannot be taken by anything else...not even, Ray's other works.

Most of the actors, technicians are gone or retired. Another Sonar Kella cannot be created (the very thought is sacrilegous) and yet it lives on...each time, we find it on TV, we watch it as if for the first time. And so strong is the magic that we wait for the new feluda movies although they pale in comparison - not for the lack of trying though. We understand and accept that. We wait eagerly for the new feluda and go and WATCH it (I saw the last one twice). And it was SRK's bad luck that his "Rab Ne Bana di Jodi" opened along with Feluda and was ofcourse, sidelined!!

How can we ever forget? And one generation will pass on the magic to the next and we will forever wait for Mukul to remember his Sonar Kella.