This poem I am now going to perform, I chose because this is Pune, and it is the Ganesh Festival. And there is nothing more poetic, nothing more rhythmic in this city then this delightful little child god, with an elephants head who personifies innocence and pure knowledge.
He is the beginning of everything and he was the beginning of my spoken word journey too, this is the first poem I wrote specifically for a poetry slam. And I stand here to perform before you with a pure desire that you all, connect with what this God personifies for me, for Pune and for
Maharashtra
This god who is also
The lord of dance
And the God of the beats
Of the drums that resound
In your houses and streets
Wake me up from my slumber
From the earth split asunder
Till the heavens they pray me
To rise up and meet
You pull out those dhols
And the dust settled gongs
And you meet at the mellow
Of the mid day heat
Every evening you master
And your movements get faster
And you’re covered with sweat
For the rhythms you love
Till the banks of the mutha
Resound with a rumble
Reflecting the thunder
And the lightning above
TIs a beautiful vision
see the men and the women
practice rapt with attention
Till the last shutters close
They smile in elation
And they play in unision
Warm beads of emotion
Perspire their clothes
The shoes do not match
With her kurti n salwar
Her duppatta its wrapped
Tucked into her waist
Screaming MOrya! With passion
She is drenched with exhaustion
She bangs with her tipru
Loose hair on her face
sparks off the hammers
Pound into the bell
Muscles are screaming
They glisten the night
The prance of the banner
The fifteen foot pole
boys jumping with rigour
they dance in delight
The health driven jogger
the homecoming hustler
The languid tapori
They smile at the sound
Over the bridges of the river
The people lean at the railings
While down through the arches
The drum strokes resound
Oh yes he is coming
That child he is coming
He is riding a mouse
He is here to destroy
All things that berate you
That conspire to hate you
He annihilates evil he’s
The giver of joy
So rise up ye people
Pick up the lazeems
Throw Gulal in the air
Get on to your feet
I am the lord of the dance
And the God of the beats
From the drums that resound
In your houses and streets
Bola ganapati bappa- Morya!
Bola mangala murti- Morya!!!
Ten days are a jumble of dances and music
Where people assemble to be entertained
You walk through the night and the streets will be filled
With the bustle to look at the mandals displaying
Tales of history and culture or of wars and disaster
Or a wall of sound boxes with woofers so loud
That you’re ears will be wrecked but you say what the heck
You live only once so you dance with the crowd!
You walk till you drop and eat butter pav bhaji
You wear horns and honk horns and you don’t care why
You hold the hand of your girl because you have to you know
It’s crowded so she won’t get lost in the fry
And at four in the morning your outing is ending
The crowds thin a little and the woofers die down
You can stop in the streets and look on at a statue
And at the brink of exhaustion, you will hear his sound
You may be eating a dosa, at an unearthly hour
Served by a sleepy waiter whose feet are so sore
Or you may be observing, the golden enamelling
Of the dagdushet Ganapati like never before
And its that combination of joy and exhaustion
That release of from rationale where you think from your heart
And the moment stops, you could hear a pin drop
And you hear from the statue the voice of the lord
I am the beginning and I am never ending
I play with life’s rhythm and I play with its rhyme
You flock to me unceasing your devotion increasing
I give you endless blessings till the ending of time
Every corner of Pune turns into a temple
Its not just the statue where my form resides
In the tea shops and showrooms
The restraints and cloakrooms
In the bus stops and kitchens I will be by your side
I’m what brings you together
You are the soul of the city,
These crowds have a power
That is rivalled by none
So go follow your passion
I will give you my blessing
Start now at this moment
You’re time has begun
So rise up ye people
Pick up the lazeems
Throw gulal in the air
And get on to your feet
I am the lord of the dance
And the God of the beats
Of the drums that resound
In your houses and streets!
Bola ganapati bappa! MOrya
Bola mangal murti! MOrya!
It is so they get ready.
They are blessed they are heady
With elation devotion divine and in love
They make the procession
His last celebration
His last halleluiah
His departure has come
From each part of the city
They are hardened and gritty
To bang on through the night
Till it’s time to immerse
They tie the drums to their waist
With a smile to their face
They fall in line with the dancers
Like a poem in a verse
Like lips do a purse
Like an army walking
Like a large crowd thronging
And the drums start banging
Like a caterpillar crawling, it’s a many footed line
While it’s walking it’s a beating with a rhythm and a rhyme
While the drumming of the drums go a thump thump thump
The banging of the cymbals go a clash clash clash
As they smash they resound, and the children make a dash
Running fast and elated as the caterpillars crash
Matching rumble with a rumble it’s a boom boom boom
While the bell sounds a toll with a clang clang clang
And they rang with a bang and the city people sang
With elation and emotion from the stores and the stands
While the flags cut air with a whoosh whoosh whoosh
Cheering as they hailed with a jai, jai jai
SO they played while they made people dance to the brink
Of a joy so profound with their sinew and their strength
When they sagged they rose up with a hey! Hey! Hey!
To the beat of the tasha with tad tad tad!
As they cried rad. rad. and their chatter bad. bad.
As children made rukus, and their mother’s kad kad
They were silencing their kids with a slap slap slap
girls in their anklets went a tinkle tinkle tink
As they clinked with their kajal laden eyelashes they blinked
The dude in the pathak gave his paramour a wink
And he banged with a vigour and a dhang dhang dhang
As she blushed and she laughed and it rang rang rang
And it sang in his ears as he walked with the band
And he shouted to the skies with a tipru in his hand
He called to the lightning with a dhol dhol dhol!
To rhythm of his love he gave a bol bol bol
[Marathi Section]
Pathakachi paule phude phude jaude
Vajavnarya manasasathi jaaga jara sodun de
Chengra chengri karu nako, dhakka salya deu nako
Ladies ahet phude jara respect tyanna tari de
Ghoshna tu sod sod, moray he bol bol
Kad awaj jasa vij pade tad tad tad
Tipru te ghum ghum, Ghanti che tun tun
Garjatate dhola kas dhad dhad dhad
Tashya cha tad tad, lazeem chi khan khan
Nagadyache tan tan, zhanza chi zham zham
Woofer dhad dhud, dj che chur chur
Bevdyancha rantipana, bhandnaryacha tana bana
Chala deva chala ata, tyachya gavi dev janar
Rozachya hya jeevanat mazha man nahi rahnar
Ratra bhar kuthe phirnar, arti kuthe karnar
Ukadiche modak atha kuthun chorun khanar?
Jiv jiv ramala, ghum ghum ghumala
Gol gol phirla, kasa basa sarala
Deva gela tol maazha, deva gela mol maazha
Paisa gela pani gela, jama kela sara gela
Ki gar gar gar gar gar gar gar
Pavasache sar sar sar sar sar sar
Bhar bhar bhar bhar bhar bhar bhar
Tujhya darshanala kashi gad bad gad bad
Ki gar gar gar gar gar gar gar
Pavasache sar sar sar sar sar sar
Tuchya kade gar gar gar gar gar gar gar
Pavasache sar sar sar sar sar sar
Tuch kar mala par par par par
Tuch maazha ghar dar dar dar dar
Tuzhya kadhe alo deva kahi nahi rahilo
Tuzhya madhe jaude me par par par
Gar gar gar gar gar gar gar
PAvasache sar sar sar sar sar sar sar
Gar gar gar gar gar gar
Pavasache sar sar sar sar sar sar
Gar gar Gar gar gar gar gar
Pavasache sar sar sar sar sar sar sar
Moraya Moraya mee baal taanhe
Tujheech sewaa karoo kaay jaane
Anyaay maajhe kotyaan-akotee
Moreshwara baa tu ghaal potee