Poems of Sajal Bandyopadhyay- Translated by Nilabja Chakrabarti

*POEMS OF SAJAL BANDYOPADHYAY*

Translated From Bangla by Nilabja Chakrabarti

THE FEAR

Whenever I say ‘I’m fine’

I can see a thermometer –

‘Bye’

And the door is closed immediately.

Asking the skeleton

In front of the mirror –

Who is alive?

THE INFALLIBLE

You are worshipping your master.

You are bringing up your children.

You are wetting your money with wine.

You are keeping your money inside your woman.

You are calculating bank interests.

You are constructing a house.

You are purchasing land.

How the rabbits are hiding faces

Inside the pits!

THE DREAM

I dream of a holiday in hills.

I dream to sink in a sea.

I dream of naked ladies.

But I don’t dream about death.

And

I wait in my sleep –

When I shall be dreaming about life.

THE SPECTATOR

Walls are getting dirty in my house.

Vests put on are fissured,

Pages of the books are getting yellowish,

Meeting friends rarely these days,

Diaries and calendars are getting piled up,

Say, what to do!

THE QUESTION

I return to the same house

I sleep in the same bed –

I get into the bed with the same person –

Why don’t I write poetry with the same words?

Why don’t I remain the same person?

A ROOM

I have a door,

I have two windows,

I have four walls,

I have a table,

I have five pens,

I have a pitcher,

I have two beds,

I have two pillows,

I have one side-pillow,

I have a sheet to cover,

Please, don’t ask me –

Where is the room?

A STILL PHOTOGRAPH

Records will be left alone –

Cold pipes –

Yellowish pages of the books –

May be some vodka left inside the bottle –

Yet

Everything

Everybody

Always

A year in the calendar

A month

A day

A still photograph

WHEN IT’S MORNING

A shadow beside another shadow –

We three

Walking together

Touching each other –

No one is talking

No one is making any sound

And the night darkens

When its morning

No shadows are found

Neither anybody

Only a lonely pain