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4 days ago
- Climate
- Scroll.in
‘The umbrellas are on a protest march': Bishnu Mohapatra's poems on rain for a desolate May
It is May. And May has its darling buds. Palash and hibiscus. Zinnia and marigold. But this May is not the month of flowers in the Indian plains. It is a parched month of pining. For compassion. And for the rain. The open beak of the sparrow and cuckoo, the dry petals of marigolds and zinnias, the paws of cats and the dogs, and the desert of the mind and the heart all wait, panting for the rain to descend. So do the poems of Bishnu Mohapatra's book, Rain Incarnations. It is rain in its many (in)carnations - the euphoria, the nostalgia, the awakening of the rain, as it arrives, as it seeps in, as it sponges in and caresses the soil and all life nestled within. Paeans to rain and the monsoon are not new in the subcontinent. Kalidasa's Ritusamhara offers resplendent rhymes to rain, a Sanskritic canon that Rabindranath Tagore was very fond of. His early work Bhanusingher Padabali carries clear signs of how immersed he was in both Kalidasa and the rains. In between these two maestros of monsoon came the mythologies of rain, the rhymes and the lores, and the poetry of Mas'ud Sa'd Salman, Mirabai, Surdas, Kabir and even Mirza Ghalib. When Tansen sang Megh Malhar and Desh, he could bring rains to the dry and wry lands of the northern plains, it is said. In recent years, one can remember Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things invoking, in her way, the wetness of Kerala; or Alexander Frater's Chasing the Monsoon, which the critic Rukun Advani called 'a literary monsoon mania' which made 'a religion of rain'. Rain is in our music, our food, our travels, and indeed, in our tongues. Clearly, no one – no poet, no wanderer, no romantic, no raconteur – could be immune to the subcontinental samhara of the monsoon. Mohapatra, who is a senior professor of politics at Krea University and an acclaimed Odia poet, is the latest literary devotee of the rain. Rain Incarnations is his elegantly published volume of mostly short poems translated eloquently by Aparna Uppaluri and are accompanied by a set of minimalist, mostly monochrome, atmospheric, abstract art by Gauri Nagpal. It is a petit volume in every sense of the French word. A note on the original Odia volume, Barshavatar, by Uppaluri perhaps best captures the mood of the original. The rain of Barshavatar, she writes, is 'the rain of the ordinary man, the ordinary woman, it is the rain that ripens mangoes; here, rain is a witness, rain is time…lost love,…God's gaze; rain dances, sleeps, transforms, glides, flies and sinks'. In keeping with the mythical origins of the title, we see, among others, the dancing rain in 'Raasa Leela', and the departed rain in 'departure'. Then there is the troubadour-like lonely rain with whom a chance meeting is valued on a deserted night on the street; or the shifting relationship with the rain during the pandemic, or when one is faced with the idea, if not the actuality, of death. In 'Blame', probably the most touching poem of the volume, rain bears the cross of all human adventures. These themes are perhaps to be expected in the lines of a poet who invokes the rain as muse. But what is genuinely telling are the poems in which the political scientist in Bishnu peeks from the behind the poet in him, in poems like 'Rain thinks of Socrates' or 'Rain in the Footsteps of Ambedkar' – in the first, rain 'representing' the suicidal thirst for knowledge, and in the second, the source of ablution. Most poems in this wonderful volume would call for a reread; the first time to comprehend, then to soak in them. In this country of the present, without the slightest touch of compassion, dry in heart and isolated in hate, may rain inundate us all. As it should. This May. Blame Tonight the moon's youth is squandered. For this, we can blame the rain. The salt of love we hoarded for years, has been washed away into the ocean For this, we can blame the rain. The black mole on my lover's breast slips slowly to her belly. For this, we can blame the rain. Flouting all orders, the umbrellas of the city are out on a protest march. Demands, slogans, and speeches fill the streets, police break their barricade. Even for this, we can blame the rain. In the Irani café in Bandra, Sarveshwar while cleaning the tables, remembers the moist eyes of his mother. A few drops of his tears fall into a teacup. For this, too, we can blame the rain. Rain thinks of Socrates I am not an imitation, nor an image of my own being. I am not a diminished body, nor its broken reflection. You will not find me, even if you look for me. My ideal form is not in your heaven. I have wandered for long around the world, fatigued, with muscles tired, heels cracked and broken, soles of my feet, drenched in blood. I have walked the world. Whether you know it or not, I live life caught in my own questions. From the womb of my answers, questions emerge like dark butterflies and scatter across my sky. That day, you drank hemlock surrounded by your friends, your disciples, your lovers. Your feet, then fingers, then your thighs and your abdomen, finally your heart – slowly turned to stone. I loitered in the city-square for a long time, everything was quiet – only the untimely cawing of the crows. Your toga came flying, a pack of street dogs tore it to shreds. I rolled over those tatters till they moistened and mingled with the earth. I will tell you a truth. I too intoxicated the young. Made and unmade known and unknown Gods. Like you, I know Life is familiar – Death, intimate. Raasa Leela Look, look – at that ecstatic dance of rain, like Sri Ramakrishna swaying, or avadhootas with ashen bodies whirling in abandon. Rain appears still, at times – like a note held in raag Malhar, or like Manguli the peasant, rapt in love for his wife. Rain, an unruly cow in the city forages, feeding on everything. Torn clothes, pajamas, hawai chappals, polythene bags, crumpled newspaper, computer CDs, condoms, and old bottles of homeopathic remedies. Everything whisked together and gulped. Still, much remains – like the broken arm of Jesus in Kandhamal, like severed limbs of workers of Kalinganagar, or the duplicity of our statesmen. The deep sad sigh of those whose lands are taken by force, their bulging anger, our blind intolerance and the torso of broken dreams. In these turbulent times, the times of war – Where does the rain get such courage? To dance wildly on the high streets of the City? Rain – melting moonlight pearl fallen off the stars horses let loose from the stable dove flown away from its coop first touch and the stirring of breasts intimate flicker unseen face of the world rumble of drums naked water lily green melody. 'Rain does not deceive, has no alibi' Who says this? Who flatters rain? Look, look, again – at this ecstatic Raasa of Rain Its Leela And the wild laughter of its sycophants all around. Sayandeb Chowdhury teaches literature at Krea University, Andhra Pradesh.
Al Jazeera
27-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Kashmir attack live: ‘Harshest response' to Pahalgam assault – India's Modi
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reiterated that Pahalgam attackers 'will be served with the harshest response'.The Indian army says there has been 'unprovoked' firing 'initiated by Pakistan' along the Line of Control – the de facto border that divides Kashmir into two. Pakistan has not commented Saturday, Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif called for a neutral investigation into the April 22 attack that killed 26 people. India has blamed Pakistan for cross-border 'terrorism', a charge it has taken various steps, including scaling down diplomatic ties with Pakistan and suspending its participation in the vital Indus Waters Treaty, in the wake of the deadliest attack on civilians in two attack has shattered the Indian government's narrative of bringing normalcy to the Muslim-majority region through its heavy-handed approach, experts say. New Delhi scrapped the region's limited autonomy in 2019 and brought the state under direct rule from New Delhi – a move that has further alienated Kashmiris. Update: Date: 3m ago (10:05 GMT) Title: 'India dominated by a hyper-nationalist atmosphere' Content: Sumantra Bose, a political science professor at Krea University in India, tells Al Jazeera that the country is currently dominated by nationalist hardliners. 'There is a media frenzy and widespread outrage as the public calls for revenge and retribution,' he said, referring to the atmosphere in the wake of Tuesday's deadly Pahalgam attack. 'And of course, Prime Minister Modi's speech yesterday added further fuel to that fire,' Bose stressed. The professor said the anger is also because the slain tourists came from all over India. 'So bodies are returning to cities throughout the country,' he noted. 'The atmosphere here is absolutely fevered and large parts of the Indian media is playing a big role in stoking the shock and outrage that has encompassed the country,' he concluded. Update: Date: 18m ago (09:50 GMT) Title: What happened during the Pahalgam attack? Content: Update: Date: 33m ago (09:35 GMT) Title: Is the Indus Waters Treaty the latest India-Pakistan flashpoint? Content: India and Pakistan, home to an estimated combined population of more than 1.6 billion, are heavily dependent on the rivers flowing from the Himalayas for their water needs. After nine years of discussions, facilitated by the World Bank, then-Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and former Pakistani President Ayub Khan signed the Indus Waters Treaty in September 1960. The treaty was signed as both nations rely on the same river systems for drinking and irrigation. Under the treaty, India controls three eastern rivers – Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas – while Pakistan controls three western rivers – Jhelum, Chenab, and Indus. India is obligated to allow the waters of the western rivers to flow into Pakistan with limited exceptions. Read our explainer on the Indus Waters Treaty here. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. End of dialog window. This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. Update: Date: 48m ago (09:20 GMT) Title: 'We could be on the threshold of a full-blown crisis' Content: Maleeha Lodhi, a former Pakistani diplomat, has told Al Jazeera that there is 'a sombre mood' in Pakistan with a great deal of apprehension about what might happen next. 'The tensions between the two countries have already pushed the region into an uncharted territory,' she said. Lodhi added: 'The nuclear neighbours are on the brink of a more dangerous confrontation, so there are fears, especially because of speeches by Prime Minister Modi as well as the Indian media.' The former ambassador stressed due to this rhetoric there is a fear that India might take 'kinetic action' against Pakistan. 'That would mean a very strong, robust response from Pakistan,' she said. 'So, the fear and the apprehension are really focused on the fact that we could be on the threshold of a full-blown crisis,' Lodhi added. Update: Date: 1h ago (09:05 GMT) Title: Attackers will be served with 'harshest response', says Modi Content: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reiterated that the perpetrators and conspirators of the Pahalgam attack 'will be served with the harshest response'. He said the attack took place as 'democracy was getting strengthened' in Kashmir, without elaborating on steps taken to strengthen democracy in Indian-administered Kashmir. Modi's government stripped Kashmir of its special status in 2019, putting it under federal rule. The democratically elected government, in place since last year, has essentially no say in the governance of the region. Experts say Modi's security-first approach has further alienated Kashmiris, who have borne the brunt of violence since armed rebellion erupted in the late 1980s. Kashmiri rebels, who seek independence or merger with Pakistan, have been fighting Indian rule since then. During his radio programme Mann Ki Baat, Modi said he had received calls, letters and messages from world leaders condemning the attack, and said 'the entire world stands with the 1.4 billion Indians in our fight against terrorism'. Update: Date: 1h ago (08:55 GMT) Title: 'The waters of the Indus are ours,' says Indian chief minister Content: Himanta Biswa Sarma, the chief minister of the northeastern Indian state of Assam, has reiterated India's stance against Pakistan, saying no one can 'deter India from taking decisive revenge'. 'Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India will hunt down terror and destroy terror infrastructure wherever it exists in the world. India's national security is non-negotiable. The waters of the Indus are ours — and they shall remain ours, unchallenged and eternal,' Sarma wrote on X. He was responding to a comment by Pakistani politician Bilawal Bhutto Zardari following India's suspension of the Indus Water Treaty in the wake of the Pahalgam attack. 'Indus River is ours and will remain ours; either our water will flow from this Indus or your blood,' Bhutto, the leader of the Pakistan People's Party, was quoted as saying by Indian news agency ANI. The State of Pakistan has a long and bloody history of betrayal — it took the lives of Bilawal Bhutto's grandfather and mother. It is a tragedy that an unworthy son today chooses to speak in a manner that dishonors even their sacrifice. I extend my deepest condolences to him in… — Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) April 26, 2025 Update: Date: 1h ago (08:40 GMT) Title: India, Pakistan exchange fire for third consecutive night Content: For the third night in a row, Pakistani and Indian troops exchanged fire as relations between the neighbours worsened following the deadly attack in Kashmir. The Indian army said there was 'unprovoked' firing of small arms 'initiated by Pakistan' along the Line of Control (LoC) that separates the two countries. '[Our] own troops responded effectively with appropriate small arms fire,' it added. Pakistan has not confirmed the latest exchange of fire. Update: Date: 1h ago (08:35 GMT) Title: India's NIA takes over investigation into deadly Kashmir attack Content: The National Investigation Agency (NIA), India's counterterrorism organisation, has taken over the probe into the deadly Pahalgam attack, which killed at least 26 people. An NIA team is visiting the site of the attack and is being supported by forensic experts. 'The eyewitnesses are being questioned in minute detail to piece together the sequence of events that led to one of the worst terror attacks in Kashmir,' an agency statement said on Sunday. Update: Date: 1h ago (08:30 GMT) Title: Here's where things stand Content: Let's bring you up to speed with the latest developments: Update: Date: 1h ago (08:27 GMT) Title: Welcome to our live coverage Content: Hello, and thank you for joining our live coverage of the rising India-Pakistan tensions following a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir's Pahalgam. Stay with Al Jazeera's Live team as we bring you all the latest developments, reactions and analysis throughout the day.
