I Bay On A Holiday - On Independece Day

May we make ourselves deserving enough for the freedom we have got.

I BAY ON A HOLIDAY
- Jaykumar Shah

I got up to the sound of Lata's sweet melody today,
"Zara aankh mein bharlo pani", it said on a holiday,

I thought my TV was loud, I saw my geyser shout,
I saw a huge electricity bill, it was time to get it out,
I stood up, took the Baggry's Muesli, have to plan,
A movie, some friends, a few drinks down with elan,

My mom says, we got to go for society's flag hoisting,
People gulping samosas with tea, hypocricy foisting,
A thought passed me, and a tv talk played back,
Inflation, Infrastructure, Ingenuity, power outblack;

I curse the government, I curse the administration,
They care for themselves alone, no common ration,
I curse as I move out to bring the tickets for the show,
See the beggars on road, see the dirty paan spit flow,

If this is the life I am going to get for my taxes and pain,
I am going to use my first chance to get back to Britain,
There the life is good, the roads are fine, scotch is nice,
And here people fight for a shelter and a bowl of rice,

I get the tickets, thank god I was on time, I glow,
Coming back, I see the slums, the dirty water flow,
The samosas and tea are over and its time for the flag,
Befor the anthem, I rush back to them throwing my bag,

As I bring my hands above my head, a rising salute,
What fills my heart with pride? anthem sings the flute,
"Jana Gana Mana Adhinayak Jaye hai" flows out,
I think what the poet then must have thought about,

O ruler of mind, O the writer of destiny, O god same,
Vindhya Himachal and from Ganga we chant your name,
We pray, he must have thought for a nation victorious,
Jai hai, Jai Hai he said, as we sing that prespostorous,

We never understood what he had to say but we sang,
I stand there, thought of it, and the thought hit me bang,
He wrote of a country whose Jay-gatha coud be sung,
He wrote of a country whose victories be in all rung,

I thought of the government I cursed and the beggar,
I saw others singing with a pride and ignorance bigger,
All walk out of this, Samosas making them fuller,
If others dont work, we would go back to our ruler,

Yes I too am singing my anthem feeling all pride,
But did I groom my self well for this poet's bride,
Did I live up to the become bharat's bhagya vidhata,
Did I stop when they fought being gujarat-maratha,
"No" Came the answer from deep with in me,
How could I curse others when true I couldnt be,
With hypocricy, with guilt, with sadness I bay,
Jay hai jay hai jay hai jay jay jay jay hai.