Celebration!
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| A poem dedicated to Dimma on her b'day | |||
Ok, I have a confession to make. I'm no poet.But today's blog includes something I scribbled about my poet Dimma, a child-widow who remarried for love and earned a living all her life through writing poetry. The Queen Mother of our family, she raised my mother, sister, and me with a love as tender as it was tough. We would have been celebrating her birthday today, had she been alive.
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‘Wanting to sue the producers is as absurd a notion as my being secretly married for a year’, - Nandana Sen said in a recent interview.
Read the full article (epaper) / (html).
Source: Calcutta Times, 7 Dec 2009
‘Wanting to sue the producers is as absurd a notion as my being secretly married for a year’, - Nandana Sen said in a recent interview.
Read the full article (epaper) / (html).
Source: Calcutta Times, 7 Dec 2009
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Dimma shares her birthday with our late Kanchibhai, my father's father, an open-hearted, adventurous man who loved chemical formulas as much as he loved planting trees and going fishing. According to my Thamma, he chose her in an arranged marriage not for her beauty but because she was known to be a great flirt. I got to understand him a little through photos and family lore, but Kanchibhai still remains a sweet mystery to me.
Happy Birthday, Dimma and Kanchibhai.
Day Break
(for my grandmother)
I don’t know why
whenever I think of you
I think of early mornings
you always listened for the cannon to fire
and ships to blow, on New Year’s Eve
eyes sparkling, you dealt us round after round
all night long, hearts and diamonds
slipped through our fingers
kings and queens, knaves and clowns
waiting impatiently
for the first day to break
Mahalaya - the birthday of the goddess -
you pulled us out of bed, half asleep
we huddled around the radio, spilling tea
till airwaves burst into exuberant prayer
filling every house on every street
you knew every line by heart
and every year Ma cried
when the goddess was born
"Morning Walk!" you’d decree like a drillmaster,
grumbling, we'd drag our groggy feet
to the dry fountain where years ago
you arranged Ma’s girlhood parties
you paused near the shiuli, trying to bend,
in a flash, we were groping wet earth
grabbing white and orange fragrance in the fog
greedy, and impossibly awake
on the winter nights of my finals, every hour
you walked to my room, with unsteady steps,
"Go to bed!" you scolded, as I muttered formulas
and dozed over tea-stained history
as a teacher, you forbade all-nighters
but you stayed up with me all night
till we heard the prayers from the mosque
echo through coal smoke
summers later, during my college break
I tiptoed past you, asleep in your chair,
magnifying glass still clutched in hand
you never gave up on reading fine print, while I
couldn't even see how the big sky
was magnifying pink all over in bold,
as I stumbled into bed - unsteadier than you -
just before you’d start your day
whenever I think of you
I think of all the early mornings
I missed
Posted by Nandana Sen in Personal on Mon, 30 Nov, 2009
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Comments
Shaaz Eszed: nandana YOUR HOT AS EVER !! ALL I WANA SAY IS THAT U CAN EITHER TURN PIOUS OR SINNER ,YOUR WELL WISHER ASKING YOU TO BE SAFE FROM THOSE HORRENDOUS MEN OF MEDIA AND FAME .
Posted on Tue, 12 Jan, 2010 Report abuse
Gangadhar Bandyopa..:
When I was reading the DaY Break, for the time being, I forgot my age and become aligned with our own Dimma.It is indeed a sincere feeling expressed for the person whom we love from very childhood till death.
Thanks Nandana.
Sagar Kushwaha: see is hot
Posted on Thu, 07 Jan, 2010 Report abuseDebasish Pal: Very good poem ,continue
Posted on Wed, 06 Jan, 2010 Report abuseParesh Rana: hi nandana how are you your message is comming
Posted on Tue, 05 Jan, 2010 Report abuse
Charushila Biswas:
i wonder how many XX and XYs can afford to have such lovely memories about thier grand parents in this ultra fast changing world...
nice poem :)
Vishwas Upadhyay: nice poem
Posted on Wed, 30 Dec, 2009 Report abuseSanjeev Dhanashri: what u like pathner
Posted on Sun, 27 Dec, 2009 Report abuseSanjeev Dhanashri: hi u miss me
Posted on Sun, 27 Dec, 2009 Report abuseKhaleeq Zakaria: your writing is awesome!!
Posted on Fri, 25 Dec, 2009 Report abuseShahjahan Shibli: yap she writes realy a nice poem. She is very interested about it. Tom agar ek poem liktha hain tho 100 poem porlo..........so it's need fr her.........but jijko joruroth hain or jo chahthy hain main esko nahi ditha...................it's my bohuth old style......
Posted on Thu, 24 Dec, 2009 Report abuse
Mathura Kundu:
Good poem. Who says that you are not a poet? Write again with our best wishes.
M N KUNDU
Prerona Bhattachar..: Hi dis is Prerona. I'm big fan of u. I've seen all ur movies. I luv ur acting. I wish I looked like u. :)
Posted on Thu, 24 Dec, 2009 Report abuseMadhukar Hegde: hello Nandana
Posted on Wed, 23 Dec, 2009 Report abuseChethan Kumar: twinkal twinkal,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,ab tho has meray yar......?
Posted on Mon, 21 Dec, 2009 Report abuse
Ankush Gupta:
hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii this is ankush.
u always seems like very intelligent, dedicate of work & like princess. i have seen ur moviesssssssssss.
little bit abt me i m very cool guy.
can we friends?
Abhijeet Manay:
Hey Nandana,
I am a big fan from Toronto! I write a bit of poetry myself and whilst I was going through the news I chanced upon your blog and well it was quite an interesting read. So I decided to comment ...
I am a big fan of Wordsworth & Tolkien. This piece to me reminded me a lil bit of their poems. The imagery is so serene and peaceful. It made me think of the quiet of the dawn before the chaos of the day commences.
It reminded me of my own grandmother back home in Bombay and even today when I go to write my examinations she always remembers to call me and wish me good luck. Loved one's can be an amazing support pillar for us all and with old age the wisdom some of them gather is quite humbling and useful for us young souls.
I'd like to end this by saying, I didn't know you had such a deeply beautiful and artistic sense of depth. I always knew you were a beautiful woman, but the inner light of your artistic essence has made me respect you even more.
I wish u all the best =)
Vijay Kumar: hiiiiiiiii, nandita u & ur poim is realy cute ,i m avoutching it that whose poim is so lovely then how great she was. really u r beyond d best ,becz u have got a cceative along with beautiful mind,realy u r great and just keep on,&become d great .
Posted on Tue, 15 Dec, 2009 Report abuse
S Choudhury:
why such beautiful personal feelings for someone very dear needs to be public? May be it is necessary for celebrities may be for the public good.
GOD knows what is the truth.
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Media Man: Keep writing!
Posted on Thu, 14 Jan, 2010 Report abuseWriting poem requires one to listen to one’s heart. It’s more a matter of conscience than an art of pen. “A poet”, they say, “is born, not made”. Your poem is the answer to the call of your heart and that’s the reason it touches the heart. Good job done. Keep it up!
Manzar Imam, Delhi