Festival of Holi

F

Holi hai… Holi hai…

It’s Holi, my friends!
Love and peace to you I send,
Sing your song, open your doors,
Colours have struck on forest floors.
The Phagun breeze tickles my ear,
Carnival time is here, my dear.

Under the stunning full moon night,
Infinite stars shining bright,
Bonfire is lit, embers glow,
Holika burns, to devotion she bows.

Young lad Prahlad firm and still,
Facing attempts to have him killed,
Faith in The Lord never shaken,
Blessed he was not mistaken.

Colours of joy are here again,
Sparkling eyes on faces of men,
Women in their myriad attire,
Things I truely admire.

Kanha smears his beloved’s face,
Radha dances with utmost grace,
Holi at Mathura and Vrindavan,
Celebrated with great enthusiasm.

Chill of winter has departed,
Farmers dance, crops harvested,
Flowers bloom, colourful surroundings,
Fresh new leaves create a rustling.

Butterflies flutter in nook and corner,
Bees suck honey to fill their armour,
Chirping birds in my garden,
Hopping around need no warden.

Colours have struck on water and land,
Colourful gulal on every hand,
Children in their gleeful mood,
To fun and food they all stay glued.

Festival of bonding, festival of joy,
Loving spirits of girl and boy,
Gulping bhang, getting intoxicated,
In mind and heart euphoria created.

This ecstasy of Basant fills my heart,
Soothens my soul, sorrows depart,
I run to the woods in a flash,
To see the Majesty of the Palash.

Visit to Shantiniketan is a must,
To see Gurudev’s creation dawn to dust,
Bosonto Utsav, a manifestation of joy,
Heavenly experience never to destroy.

Plunging deep in this ocean of splendour,
You and I all together,
Sprinkle colours on each other,
Dance and sing to the stroke of laughter.

May we meet again and again,
Year after year, without complain,
Feeling of brotherhood deeply ingrained,
Our spirits and vitality all sustained.

By Indrani Roychoudhury

About me

Indrani Roychoudhury

Retirement after long service and movement of grown-up children away from home brought about a sea change in my life. I started reading Rabindranath Tagore’s poetry on nature, love and devotion which aroused spiritual leanings within me. Even cursory browsing of translations of Bhagwad Gita helped to sprout newer thought processes within my inner self. The result was peace with the difficulties of life.

Simultaneously, household activities started taking up more time. My dormant interest in cooking special dishes got life and simple items such as making Jhal Muri gave me immense joy. This simple Bengali street food travelled with me to USA and Switzerland where my son Meher was staying with his family.

During the Covid period my daughter Piuli stayed with me for 2 years when she encouraged me to experiment with a fresh style of dressing. Sartorially, I am a totally changed person which friends have started noticing.

An altogether novel interest in theme-based painting encouraged me to write poetry and paint in consonance with the subject. Simultaneously, my passion for upliftment of underprivileged children came to the forefront and I began coaching them at Sarita Udyan, a nature park in Gandhinagar where I stay. I am enthusiastic about education and development of girl child and my composition Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao drew inspiration from a call given by our Prime Minister Shri Narendrabhai Modi.

I feel blessed to have been able to develop this web site containing my compositions, paintings, and photos.