Two Separate Adaptations, Two Separate Attempts

• Scene 1 - A young man with lots of dreams in his eyes comes to a new city. And a big city it is. He has lived in some other big city before. Therefore, he knows how it works - a city is as good as the people you meet there. It is as homely and welcoming as the friends you make there. When there is shortage of new friends there is shortage of everything. Long weekends are indeed very lengthy and very much unwanted. What can be done? Someone suggests to watch a film. The film's central theme is Kolkata, which is the big city where he lived before. He buys a single ticket, enters the theater and a narration starts. A rich baritone takes him back to his olden days of street food, Durga Puja, banks of Ganges and strikes and unrest - things that symbolize his Kolkata. Parineeta, the Hindi movie is based on a novel by Sarat Chandra Chattopaddhyay, a literary monument from Bengal; the boy had never read the text before. Few scenes into the rushes and he gets to hear an iconic Tagore song. Though he never knew the text of the story, but he knew the text of the original song in Bengali, word by word, by heart. An exquisite realism brushes through his heart; the tune is kept as it is and words are as if dropping from the heaven, in near-perfect pertinence. Had Tagore lived till this day, he would have been very happy. "Phool Phool Bhanwra Dole Man Mein Gunje Teri Yaad......" feels not a translation of "Phoole Phoole Dhole Dhole.....". It feels not an adaptation either. It feels like a re-incarnation. Bollywood, his very favorite Bollywood has made the best attempt to hail Tagore, his very own Tagore. In the song, the little boy Shekhar and the little girl Lolita are enjoying the tune of a Westernized melody, they are soaked in it and the simplicity of the words, the idea of natural love are coming through so gently. Four lines happen with the original tune and then the song navigates away to yet another tune; but, the impression that those four lines gives is simply heavenly. For once meter and rhythm conjoined and produced a marvel. Long after the film ends, long after Lolita and Shekhar unite, those lines stay with the young man. The journey back home, the dinginess of the city life and the uneasiness of living alone are all washed away, at least for a few days by this marvelous creation.

                          Song from Parineeta (Music : Shantanu Moitra, Lyrics : Swanand Kirkire)

• Scene 2 - The young boy has grown up. He is no longer lonely, not at least to the outside world. He has many things to say and tell to people around; but, it is not working. The vibe is not there, the air of glory has deserted him. He is once again feeling lonely. What can be done? Someone suggests to write something. He picks up a pen and a piece of paper. He dives into his thoughts, tries to find a easy way out. Nostalgia is the easiest way out. He jumps onto an idea, goes back in time to that memorable day when he watched Parineeta and heard that song. A few words he pens down - but the essence is not coming. He erases and rewrites, erases again, writes again. Finally, some symmetry comes up, thereby comes also some poetry. It finishes with a foreword and an adaptation happens. 

                                             Original Song in Bengali (Artist : Indrani Sen)

"Phoole Phoole Dhole Dhole..."

Tenderness is an essential part of nature, and Tagore believes in it. This wonderful song is a depiction of tenderness that characterizes nature. Everything about the poem is soft and mild. The piece of nature being talked about can be anywhere in this planet - where there is still a piece of nature left for us. The true love for nature is only possible to attend when one frees up one's mind and appreciates the qualities it possesses. Often these qualities are subtle, and one has to look at them carefully. They seldom last for long, they usually come and go and the eyes of a beholder need to appreciate them.

A Milieu

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This tender wind is a romantic thing -

It is lovely; it has plentiful to bring.

When it touches the flowers,

When it circles and hovers,

It feels so gentle,

And it creates a tingle.

So is the river,

It knows how to quiver.

The waves are not loud,

But they whisper sound.

Look at the stirring bird!

Its revelry can be heard.

It hovers here to there -

The joy spreads far and near.

To the petals, the birds, and the banks

My heart says a soft and clear "thanks"!