“.... the wound is the place where the Light enters you.” ― Rumi
Never did I imagine that something like this will leave me shaken to the core; that I will finally gather all my scattered thoughts and RETURN - to where I actually belonged.
I had never taken to any medium to post something of this sort earlier. But today (April 29, 2020) was something different.......
Cut one:
It was just last night that my heart skipped a beat seeing a post on Facebook, which said "Read out, what has happened to Him", soon to realize that it was nothing about the Man per se. However, I did abuse the owner of that post for posting such a quirky photo of the man, that literally took my breath away.
Cut two:
Soon after finishing a few important emails, as usual, I turned on the TV and was scrolling through my phone, only to realize that there is a downpour of posts and news bites all over. Taken completely by shock, I changed to a news channel (something I hadn't done in last one month just to stay away from all the moron updates on COVID-19). and the headline hit me like a 'bolt out of the blue' -- "Irrfan Khan passes away at 53". Struggled for a while in complete disbelief, ran through the posts, tweets etc. etc. etc. repeatedly, to sink in the fact that "Champak" won't come on screen with a new marvel ever again; that look in his eyes, that mysterious smile.........will just be a thing to treasure for a lifetime.
Little had I known last night, that the skipped beat was actually a hint to convey something inevitable....
"Us din apne berehmi pe, sabse zyada
Waqt roya tha
Khwabon ke asmaan ne,
Apna ek sitara jo khoya tha"
Cut three : (A Soliloquy .... that's still going on as I write this piece)
the conscious mind: "do/did you know him?"
the subconscious mind: No, I didn't. (after a short pause) Hey wait.....umm, maybe Yes, I know him .....
Otherwise,
why would - the passing away of an unknown would hurt so much ? And no, I am not sounding insane because every other person out there is shouting the same -- yes, I knew him, you knew him, we knew him - that regular travel agent 'Rana', that quintessential father 'Champak', or that lonely old man 'Sajaan Fernandes' and so many of them --- we regularly meet, pass by, exchange a smile with, fight with. Don't we???
Actually, when an art does touch some chord in your heart, the Artist is no longer any special character....he comes down to sit next to you, tells you a story, becomes part of your Ordinary Everyday...and then they are not any ordinary but Gems. Seeing his stellars was much of an intoxication, a flavor underplayed yet everlasting. Demise of such an Artist Extraordinaire, does create a VOID - which is immeasurable, never to be filled again.
Your art was like a flowing river (easygoing and endless). You left behind a treasure & an eternal but unquenchable longing for more .....
|| Ik bar to yun hoga,
thoda sa sukoon hoga
Na dil mein kasak hogi,
na sar pe junoon hoga ||
....... May you attain that eternal peace !!
Absolutely Heartbroken ..!!
