Poetry Collection-3

 Water Drought

Eyes that gazed upon the sky
have dried into falsehood—
the sky itself deceived,
as though...

Place & Meaning:

Because no rain fell,the water bodies stood empty,and the people, who kept looking upward,wept until even their tears were spent.Now, with no clouds to gift the rain,the sky feels false—and like it, the eyes of the people,devoid of water, hold no tears,false as well.

 

Traffic

Lined up in rows,

cars and buses—

and in between them,

two-wheelers weave through,

filling the road,

at every moment.

 

An Evening Time

Distant mountain peaks—

as if sketched with pencil lines.

Nearby buildings

stare up like little giants

at the great mountains.

 

Birds turn across the sky,

flying back toward their homes.

Yet we have stacked tall apartments

here and there—

their walls standing

as speed-blocks to wings.

 

It is the hour

when crimson is swallowed by shadow,

when towns appear drowned

beneath a cover.

But what veils them

is not mist—

it is the smoke of vehicles.

 

As I walk along,

the air embraces my body,

not from the trees—

but from machines,

the breath of man-made wheels.

 

Place & Meaning:

This poem captures the evening scene of city life.

 

Love Song

(Male)

 Listen, listen—
 your lover’s song is calling.
 Tell me, tell me—
 a word through your eyes.

 If you leave in anger,
 will melody still taste sweet?
 If you walk far away,
 will love also drift apart?

 For many days I may linger
 bearing your blame,
 but not a single day
 can I stay without speaking to you.

 I’ll play the flute, together with you,
 turning my breath
 into silence-breaking notes.
 I may not be like Krishna,
 but I’ll blend with the tune I learn.

 And when again you go away,
 in that very moment,
 how will I survive?

 This memory clings to my heart—
 has my prayer reached you?
 Why this delay?

 (Listen, listen…
   ...a word through your eyes)

(Female)

 Listen, listen—
 your maiden’s song is calling.
 Tell me, tell me—
 would I ever leave you?

 The river may change its course,
 I too may lose my path—
 but like the ocean,
 will I not still reach you?

 With anger at you,
 where else could I go?
 I’ll only return here,
 to punish you with my presence.

Will a dream of many days
vanish with one quarrel?
Through countless births we came—
shall we part like this?

Even autumn will pass,
and spring shall bloom again.

 Take me, play me as your joyful veena,
 I’ll sing as love’s raga—
 enough, enough,
 to bind us close again.

 (Listen, listen…
   ...would I ever leave you?)

(Male)

 Nothing else matters.
 When supreme joy stands before me,
 this joy is enough,
 this life’s purpose is fulfilled.

(Male & Female)

 Let us sing, let us sing,
 with voices blending sweetly.
 Let us play, let us play,
 the melody of love—
 united as one. (×2)

Place & Meaning :

A song where a lover and beloved, after a quarrel, sing to reconcile—blending their emotions through music and love.

                                                                                                                -NANDAGOPAL G

.