Bulleya…

“RaanjhaN de yaar bulleya
sun le pukaar bulleya
tu hi to yaar bulleya
murshid mera, murshid mera…”

The haunting voice was filling up his eardrums, just as the train was chugging out of the station.

It had been a maddening month and finally the chaos had been tamed. It was over…

The Bash…

As he sat there in the empty compartment with the wet wind on his face, staring out at the dark expanse through the open window…

He felt empty… It felt as if he did not even know who he was anymore…

He had just on a whim, packed his bag, went over to the station and boarded the first train that he could spot.

He did not even know, where it was headed…

Snuggling into his jacket, he pulled up his legs and lay down… The entire compartment was his, somehow the train was empty.

“jis din se aashna se do ajnabi hue hain
tanhaiyon ke lamhe sab multavi hue hain
kyun aaj main mohabbat phir ek baar karna chaahoon
haan…”

The Ipod churning out the voice, was an old one and with a playlist from a very different time. A time, when he did not even know the meaning of the words the voice, so beautifully crooned.

It brought back to him, flashes from a chilly winter ride on a moonless night, through a foggy village road, and an empty theater hall playing the same haunting voice, for its lone incumbent.

And then came the flashes of a beautiful lake, a brightly lit market and as he walked through the crowded lanes which were filled with lights and festive rancor…

He could smell the sweet ghee from the sweets at Kundans and taste the over-sweet gulab jamuns that were served at a place he once called home…

And within seconds, the haunting song had brought him back to Kashipur… Or Kashipur back to him…

A time, when every cell in his body felt alive… The depth of the cold, never once threatening to shut down his fire, even during the darkest nights of his life…

Where was that guy… What had happened to him…

It seemed like a lifetime had passed by…

It felt as if the memories were not his to hold anymore…

“meri rooh ka parinda phaRphaRaye
lekin sukoon ka jazeera mil na paaye
ve ki karaan..
ve ki karaan..”

The song was stuck in a loop… Just like he seemed to be… What is this play of time… and What is this life in this play…

“ve ki karaan..
ve ki karaan..”