???????वो कौन थी????????

बेहद काली, हिरनी जैसी,

कुछ बोलती, कुछ ढूँढती आँखें.

बीच बीच में मेरी तरफ देखती

फिर झुक कर , मुस्कुराती वो आंकें

हाँ, बुर्के के नकाब में से सिर्फ वो खुबसूरत आँखें

ही दिख पा रही थीं, 

लेकिन, उस काले पतले नकाब के अन्दर उसका बर्फीला सफ़ेद रंग साफ़ झलक रहा था.

तभी ट्रेन की धडधडाती तेज़ आवाज़ से

उसकी गोद में सोया बच्चा जाग कर रोने लगा

और वो कुछ परेशान सी खिसियाती हुई

उसे फिर सुलाने की कोशिश करने में लग गयी.

"क्या आपको भी लखनऊ जाना है?"..

मेरे सवाल पर उसने मुस्कुरा कर सर हिला दिया

"ट्रेन आधा घंटा लेट है"..मैंने बोलचाल शुरू करना चाहा..

मेरी तरफ देखकर वो फिर मुस्कुरा दी.

फिर कानो में मिश्री सी घोलने वाली आवाज़ में बोली..

"क्या आप अकेली जा रही हैं?"...

मैंने हाँ में सर हिला दिया..

फिर बातचीत का दौर चल  निकला

इस आधे घंटे में ही मेरी उस से अच्छी दोस्ती हो गयी थी,

वह खुबसूरत सा मासूम बच्चा भी अब सो चुका था.

तभी दोबारा ट्रेन आई, वही धडधडाती, चिल्लाती

डर से उसने बच्चे के कान बंद कर दिए..

फिर बेचैन सी इधर उधर किसी को ढूंडने लगी

स्टेशन में आज ज्यादा भीड़ थी, प्लात्फोर्म लोगों से खचाखच भरा हुआ था.

तभी हडबडाकर उसने टाइम पुचा

मैंने कहा 2:10 min,

उसकी खुबसूरत आँखों में आंसूं उभर आये

"आप इसे पकड़कर ट्रेन में चलिए, मैं इसके अब्बा को बुलाकर लाती हूं, अल्लाह  आपको लम्बी उम्र दे........"

कहता कहते वो दौड़ पड़ी,

मैंने विस्मय से उसकी तरफ देखना चाहा

लेकिन तब तक वो मेरी आँखों से ओझल हो चुकी थी,

मैंने अपने कदम ट्रेन की तरफ बडाये,

अभी ट्रेन में मैंने पहला कदम रखा ही था

के तभी, जोर के धमाके और चीखने की आवाजों के साथ ही ज़मीन थरथरा उठी

और फिर सन्नाटा.....

कुछ ही पलक में, लोगों के रोने चिल्लाने की आवाजों ने इस सन्नाटे को भंग किया,

तो मैंने भी अपना होश संभाला

स्टेशन की दूसरी तरफ एक ज़ोरदार बम धमाका हुआ था,

लोगों में बातें थीं एक बुर्केवाली महिला आतंकवादी का आत्मघाती हमला था

घडी में 2:15 min...............

मैं अवाक  रह गयी

थोड़ी देर पहले मौत मुझसे कुछ ही cm दूर थी

मेरे रोंगटे खड़े हो गए,

डर से मैं कांप रही थी,

फिर सवालों के चक्र ने मुझे घेर लिया,

वो कौन थी?? क्या सचमुच वो....??? क्या उसने एक माँ होने का फ़र्ज़ निभाया था???...या फिर इस आधे घंटे की दोस्ती का????....

मैं हैरान थी, वो बच्चा बड़ी, काली , खुबसूरत आँखों से मेरी तरफ देख रहा था..

स्टेशन में भगदड़ मची थी,

और मैं बेजान से हो चुके शरीर में, चलने की ताकत जुटा रही थी........

                                                                                                 

तारों का सत्य...

काले वीभत्स आकाश में,

दूर कहीं एक तारा था,

नन्हा सा, मगर बहुत चमकीला

हर तारे का प्यारा था,

चाँद का दुलारा था.

वो रात कुछ ज्यादा काली थी,

काले घने बादलों ने चाँद को भी ढक लिया था

वो नन्हा तारा तभी न जाने कहाँ से

ख़ुशी से नाचता हुआ, चाँद के करीब आया,

कुछ कहना चाहता था शायद चाँद से,

तभी कुछ ऐसा हुआ के चाँद चीख पड़ा,

याचक नज़रों से चाँद की तरफ देखता वो तारा,

तेजी से पृथ्वी की तरफ गिरता चला जा रहा था,

चाँद उसे रोकना चाहता था ,

पर देखते ही देखते, वह न जाने कहाँ खो गया.

आज चाँद के मन में बहुतत गुस्सा था, प्रतिशोध था,

आज वो धरती पर शीतल चाँदनी के बजाय आग बरसना चाहता था,

तभी उसने भरी नज़रों से पृथ्वी से प्रश्न किया,

के क्यूँ तुने मेरे प्यारे आँख के तारे को मुझसे चीन लिया???

पृथ्वी मुस्कुरा कर बोली,

जब तुम्हारा आकाश मुझसे मेरे तारे चीनता है,

तो मुझमें भी बहुत प्रतिशोध जागता है,

जब किसी का इकलौता बेटा , किसी का पिता, किसी की बहिन, किसी की माँ,

इस धरती से आकाश को जाते हैं,

तो मेरी भी छाती दर्द से इसी तरह फट ती  है

लेकिन मेरे प्यारे भाई 

ये सब तो हमें देखना और सहना ही होगा,

तुम्हारे तारों का धरती में समाना, और मेरे प्यारों का आकाश में लीन हो जाना.

शायद येही प्रकृति का नियम है,

और येही एक कठोर सत्य भी.... 

संघर्ष...

           

                    

वो सर्दियों की सुबह , हर दिन से कुछ अलग थी,

चारों ओर कोहरे की एक बरफ नुमाँ  चादर,

कहीं कहीं पे कभी  कभी कोई पेड़

जो शायद बहुत करीब था तेजी से दौड़ता हुआ दिखाई पड़ जाता

कभी कभी कहीं पे कोहरा कुछ कम होता..

तो प्रकृति का सौंदर्य किसी काली रात में,

एक चमकीले तारे की तरह लगता

कहीं सुनहरी धुप थी तो कहीं कोहरे की चाँदनी

कभी कोहरे के अन्धकार में मैं अपने अतीत की कुछ उलझनों में उलझ जाती 

तो कहीं धूप की चमक से अनायास ही किसी बात से मेरे होठों पे मुस्कान उभर आती..

कभी भविष्य के लिए उसी सुनहरी धुप की तरह कोई सपना बुनती

तो कभी आने वाली उलझनों से बचने के उपाय ढूँढती.

अपनी ज़िन्दगी से ज्यादा खुश नहीं रही कभी भी मैं.,

तभी, किसी की ज़ोरदार और भारी भरकम  आवाज़ से,

अचानक मेरा विचारों का चक्र टूटा

घडी में सुबह के नौ बज चुके थे,

कोई स्टेशन था शायद.

कोहरे के कारण सिर्फ आवाजें ही मेरे कानों तक पहुँच पा रही थीं,

तभी अचानक एक चेहरा मेरी आँखों के सामने उभरा

निरीह, कुछ ढूँढती, शायद भूक प्यास से व्याकुल आँखों को देखकर,

ठण्ड से कम, ओर उन आँखों की शांत आवाज़ से मेरे रौंगटे खड़े हो गए....

वो बूढी आँखें जीवन के इस संघर्ष से जूझ रही थीं,

"दो दिन से भूका हूँ,...ठण्ड से हर डिब्बे की खिड़की बंद है....

बड़ी मुश्किल से तुम्हारी खिड़की खुली मिली है,...इस बूढ़े को निराश मत कर बेटी,

कुछ दे दे वरना ये बेजान शरीर ठण्ड से दम तोड़ देगा"....

बिना कुछ सोचे समझे बैग से अपना tiffin निकाल के उसकी ओर बड़ा दिया...

और वो आगे बढ गया, कुछ दुआएं बदले में दे गया..

आगे का द्रश्य देख कर मेरी आँखें खुली की खुली रह गयीं....

बिना एक पैर और एक हाथ के उस दुबले बूढ़े शरीर में सिर्फ एक शाल थी.

तभी एक, चार लोगों का परिवार मेरे डिब्बे में चड़ा

दो दो जाकेट पहनने के बावजूद आते ही उन्होंने खिड़की बंद करवा दी

फिर खाने के डिब्बे निकाल कर बैठ गए

तरह तरह के खाने से भरे उनके डिब्बे देखकर मुझे भी अब भूक लगने लगी.

लेकिन अपना  tiffin तो मैं दे चुकी थी,

सिर्फ चाय से ही काम चलाना पड़ा.

उनके दो बच्चों ने काफी खाना बर्बाद किया था,

जिसे बिना किसी दर्द के उन्होंने  खिड़की से बहार फैंक दिया

तभी उस बंद होती खिड़की से मैंने

दो चार बच्चों को उस फैंके हुए खाने की तरफ दौड़ते देखा....

ट्रेन आगे बड़ी और खिड़की भी बंद हो गयी...

उस बूढ़े की शकल अभी भी मेरी आँखों के आगे घूम रही थी

अपनी ज़िन्दगी की मुश्किलें मुझे अब कुछ आसान लग रही थीं,

मेरा ये सफ़र शायद थोड़ा तो सार्थक हो गया था,

ट्रेन की पटरी पे चलती हुई या फिर दौड़ती हुई  सी ज़िन्दगी,..

शायद यही जीवन है, ......

या फिर सिर्फ संघर्ष....

                                    

I"ll not be able to meet u now....
I know.......but still I want to meet u...
your fragrance still remains within me...
in my eyes, my lips, my cheeks, my heart....
yes....I can feel u....feel ur touch,.....
It only takes a second...to close my eyes.....
and there u stand in front of me......
with arms wide open.....
and I m lost.....lost within u...ur love and care...

शायद आज आखिरी दिन था

वो चेहरा शायद फिर कभी नज़र न आये

हाँ, ये वही चेहरा था जिसे मैं रोज़ देखती थी,

और शायद रोज़ देखना भी चाहती थी..

लेकिन ज़रूरी  तो नहीं के जो हम चाहें बिलकुल वही वो ऊपर वाला , वो भगवान् भी चाहे...

क्यूंकि वो तो हमेशा हमारे लिए हमसे कुछ बेहतर ही चाहता है,

और कभी कभी इस चाहने में हमारा दिल टूटता है

मेरा भी दिल आज टूट सा रहा था....

लेकिन दिल का क्या ही...

जैसे समझाओ  समझ जाता है....

मैंने फिर एक बार नज़र भर के उस चेहरे को देखा..

हमेशा के लिए उसकी तस्वीर अपने अन्दर बसाने  के लिए

और फिर भारी कदमो से ......

शायद क़दमों से भी ज्यादा भारी मन  से, वहां से आ गयी...

फिर कभी भी न लौटने के लिए.....

MASTERPIECE BY GOD....

A bearded face, with a shining forehead, a shine that can brighten a day, a shine that is so different from the rest of the world, .......athletic build with a tall body, ...a grave..God fearing man, with a heavy and strident voice, a voice that is deep and commanding, with hair so black and colour so fair...small light brown eyes, with a frightening stare, a man of commitments, a man of words.......Yes..he is my papa, a father so different, so strict, so loving, so caring and so possessive,..........a father like no child can have.......
Yes, he so different , different from all the fathers of this world, like other fathers, he never told us stories, neither did he play with us...but yes , he taught us...taught us etiquette, taught us to respect elders, to love others, to be polite and humble, taught us to speak in English, ......taught us mathematics........but a day before the exam...Oh God!!!!! I still remember his slaps...slaps on my face and thighs.......he always wanted us to be on top..may be on top of the world....that I never did. As children, we both hung on his arms and he lifted his arms up and we both hung high above the ground, may be he wanted us to rise...rise in our lives, high above all....
Yes, I remember, I remember the quite smile, the contentment on his face as I saw him walk on the gallery of our school on the result day.....with my sister's report card in his hands,,,,,,,he was happy, he was satisfied, his daughter stood first in her class. My sister's report had always been satisfactory, upto his expectations, either Ist or IInd in her class and this was the reason I always escaped from his eyes, slipped off my report card from his hands and he always gave a contended smile, happy with the card in his hands....
Although I always knew, he loved us, he loved us a lot, a lot more than his life, but still I was so scared of him since childhood....He was so strict, that some times we called him HITLER, although he never knew that......
Then slowly with time, as we grew up, he grew old, and though his hair became snow like since we were in std. 3 , he coloured them golden (brown), with the colour of henna, ....We used to value even a single hair that fell from his head, calling it costly, costly like GOLD, since it was the GOLDEN hair, or more importantly golden hair of our papa, and he used to smile, smile only a little, but we knew that he was hiding his smile from us, ..........the reason ......we never came to know....and slowly time took away the jungle of golden hair, and left only a few of them, very thin, and soft,....cotton like..,though still golden...
I have seen him helpless too....., helpless with tears in his small light brown eyes.........eyes that were no longer frightening......but pleading......pleading to save his daughter's life.......this was the time when my twin sis got seriouly ill......and had to be admitted in the hospital.......I have seen different expressions in his eyes, on his face,,,,,,since childhood,...to this age...

Although he had been strict, very very strict, that we often got reprimanded rather lambasted from him, but that strictness had his love hidden behind it and that strictness had a serious intention of making his children worth...worth of affection from others, worth of achievements in life...., worth of helping others,..., worth of everything......though we hated him sometimes when he caned us, but today we respect him a lot....for, it was his hard and fast rules that made us what we are today...and we love him, love him a lot........THANKS FOR EVERYTHING PAPA....

Never Ending "WHY" of My Life.......

WHY do I want to change myself????

WHY can't I express my inner-self???

WHY when I don't want to laugh I have to do it...

how can I do so when I am not happy even a bit..

WHY do I show I m happy when I am really not,

and I pretend to be satisfied with whatever I have got.

Why do I keep a smile on my face, that is no more real

and may be one day it'll also be lost I always fear.

there was a time when my smile reflected the happiness of my heart and then there was change that was so drastic,

slowly the childhood contentment faded away, and my smile became PLASTIC....

WHY can't I resist to all pains, anxieties, and loneliness in my life,

WHY have I started feeling it as a burden on my shoulders, with me standing on the tip of a knife...

WHY can't I relieve myself from this debilitating circle of stress

Oh please!!! can anyone give me the address of happiness...

WHY?????? WHY???????? WHY???????

WHY this never ending "WHY" has entered my life???

can there ever be any answer to this BIG mysterious ...."WHY"..........

The Colors of My Life

On a hot summer day, I sat near the window

and thoughts in my mind were running like a doe.

There was a time when my life was colorful and bright,

Gradually the colors faded away with time, leaving behind a life that was “Black & White”..

Although, the insipidness in my life I had never felt,

Until one day something strange happened to me,

A feeling I had never felt before,

For a friend who was always there for me, to adore.

He loved me like his life, he always said,

and that he want to brighten my life with brilliant colors, blue, green and red.

I wanted to paint my life with the colors of his love,

A feeling so lively and pure……. like a little white dove,

…………………………………………………………….

Some constraints must have been there,

Otherwise there seemed no reason for his ungratefulness,

Yes……..I still love him..

But now with a heart full of pain up to the brim.

May be he loves me too….

But it was the destiny that made us to do what we never wanted to…………

He, who came to color my life, took away even the “White”..out of the “Black & White”…

My life now left only with the “Black”….without any white….

No one now can ever color my life

Because no color can cover the darkness of the left out “BLACK”…………

the of

DIANA...... the most beautiful lady of the world..........which she is today and will remain forever........not only beautiful by her looks, but by heart also....."The worst illness of our time is that so many people have to suffer from not ever being loved.." these lines by her are really heart touching and clearly indicates how lonely she had been in her life.......married at an early age of 19 to Prince Charles 32 at the time......she missed true love in her life......only a few people know about her true love to Hasnat Khan, a Pakistani heart surgeon. She even cleaned his room , ironed his clothes, cleaned dishes for him......... imagine!!!!!!!! A PRINCESS DOING ALL SMALL HOUSEHOLD CHORES FOR A COMMON MAN......Diana was the third daughter of Lord Edward John Spencer, at a very young age of 8 years she saw the divorce of her parents......... her father took her and her brothers's custody from the court and married Raine, Countess of Dartmouth, the only daughter of romantic novelist Barbara Cartland and Alexander McCorquodale..........then like every girl at her youth she started looking for her prince charming and she met the "real Prince"...but did not find the love she was looking for......her unhappy marriage made her to attempt suicide on October 1985......she became a public figure from the announcement of her engagement to Prince Charles, Diana remained the focus of worldwide media scrutiny before, during and after her marriage. This continued in the years following her death in a car crash and showed a display of public mourning.Prince Charles had previously been linked to Diana's older sister Sarah. He had known Diana for several years, but he first took a serious interest in her as a potential bride during the summer of 1980, when they were guests at a country weekend, where she watched him play polo.The couple subsequently courted in London. The Prince proposed on 6 February 1981, and Diana accepted and finally the 20-year-old pretty lady became "The Princess of Wales" when she married Charles on 29 July 1981. However in 1983 she confided in Premier of Newfoundland Brian Peckford: "I am finding it very difficult to cope with the pressures of being Princess of Wales, but I am learning to cope," from the mid-1980s, the Princess of Wales became increasingly associated with numerous charities. Her divorce was finalised on 28 August 1996.Diana dated the respected heart surgeon Hasnat Khan, from Jhelum, Pakistan, who was called "the love of her life" after her death by many of her closest friends, for almost two years, before Khan ended the relationship. Khan was intensely private and the relationship was conducted in secrecy, with Diana lying to members of the press who questioned her about it. Khan was from a traditional Pakistani family who expected him to marry from a related Muslim clan, and although Diana expressed willingness to convert to Islam, their differences, not only religion, became too much for Khan.Finally their relationship ended in a late-night meeting in Hyde Park, in June 1997. Her life story shows how lonely she spent her life....with happiness coming in installments to her.....may be this was the fate of the Lovely Princess.......Diana was closely associated with the common man....sharing their problems.....helping them....made her more and more popular among the masses....people loved her for her nature.....her behavior towards the common man....may be she found internal peace by helping others.....On Sunday 31 August 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales died as a result of injuries sustained in a car accident in the Pont de l'Alma road tunnel in Paris, France.Diana's death was met with extraordinary public expressions of grief, and her public funeral at Westminster Abbey on 6 September drew an estimated 3 million mourners and onlookers in London, as well as worldwide television coverage, which overshadowed the news of the death the previous day of Mother Teresa in Kolkata (Calcutta). I clearly remember I was in class eight and watched her funeral with a heavy heart.....since i had come to know about her only a few months back....and after knowing about her ..one more dream of "Meeting the Princess someday"..was added to my dreambook.....but after the news the newly budded dream shattered.....but i still love her, i still adore her more than ever before.........

in her everlasting memory

Navadha..

INDIA BEING DIVIDED: UNITY IN DIVERSITY, MASKED BY THE POLITICIANS....

Independence is not just a word...it is a feeling; it is the life, life for the many people of a country, an independent country.... What does it take to gain independence????.......sacrifices???......lives????.......blood????.......may be...just a simple answer to all this is "UNITY"......Unity is the biggest strength of.....a "Nation"....

Its been a strange trend in India.......I do not say that India lacks unity.....but the way we define unity is wrong.......for example unity within states........are Gujratis, or Marathis, or people of Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka........not Indians.....what are we?????.........are we just a religion??? or are we just a state??????.....no we are INDIANS.... India being the largest democracy in the world with a civilization more than five thousand years old boasts of multiple cultural origins. India is a land of diverse cultures, religions and communities. There is great diversity in our traditions, manners, habits, tastes and customs. Each and every region of the country portrays different customs and traditions. But though we speak different languages yet we are all Indians. 'Unity in Diversity' has been the distinctive feature of our culture. To live peacefully has been our motto and this motto has helped us to achieve independence. During India's struggle for freedom no one thought in a manner that they are a different religion, or culture, or language, or state.... they just thought of India's independence......and the result is in front of you all..........INDIA GAINED INDEPENDENCE....

Don't you think that these politicians are trying to divide us.....just as britishers did....."DIVIDE AND RULE".....don't you think that we are being divided on the basis of states just for the politician's cause............What was meant by Ashok chavan's reaction for Mr. Amitabh bachchan at the inaugration of Bandra-Worli sea link????? The chief minister insisted that he was not aware that the actor had been invited as a special guest. Chavan also indicated that he would have preferred to stay away had he known of the actor’s presence. Only because he says that Mr. Amitabh bachchan is the brand Ambassador of another state.....Gujrat.......does that really mean that now he is not allowed or will not be liked to attend the state inaugural functions or any other function of another state....... same was the case for Raj thakrey.......Is Maharashtra a different nation....doesn't it come under the nation India???? Are maharashtriyan people not Indians????? .........isn't INDIA BEING DIVIDED on political backgrounds????....

What do these people want to do????? Divide India to gain power for them????? Do these people want to divide India into small nations and then into small countries???....the existence, the identity of India our motherland is in threat.........is endangered ..........the country takes steps to save endangered species ..."SAVE THE TIGERS" is recent among such initiatives...........but who has the duty to take the initiative to "SAVE THE NATION".....shouldn't we all "THE CITIZENS OF INDIA" take such an initiative...........so let's pledge ....pledge to SAVE THE COUNTRY....save it from the dirty intentions......let's now start to fulfill the duty of a responsible INDIAN CITIZEN.........because when the common people of India will take the responsibility........ even the fake power of the politicians will fail...............

Is this Love.......

Once upon a time ,there was a girl who was really very pretty,

with a very few friends, who called her smiling beauty.

she had pink rosy lips, and her color was very fair

sea green were her eyes, and had long curly hair

she was satisfied with what she had, and was happy with her looks

never did she waste her time, and found life in her books

her smiling face was lively with an innocence very true

until one day something happened and her happiness off it blew

she was on her way to home, when she saw a guy

who was strangely looking at her when she was wishing her friends a gud bye.

next day again the same boy was there

and the girl walked out quietly until he was nowhere

one day when she was standing on the bus stop

he came to her, with one hand waving and the other holding his laptop.

he told her that his Pg exams were near

and that he wanted her to guide him for his career

the girl smiled and got his intentions tested

to help someone in studies she was always interested

daily now they started meeting

and one day the boy came up with a greeting

looking deep into her lovely eyes he said to her softly, I love you dear,

and she was shocked, for these words she was not ready to hear

she said a firm no, the boy went back smiling,

she returned to her home with an odd feeling,

it was nearly a month after the incident,

but they were still very good friends.

one day again the boy repeated the same three beautiful words

the girl now irritated said it was that easy to captivate a bird

next day she was astonished , not to find him,

her heart sank with feelings so strange up-to the brim.

she called him and he said he was fine

and told her, he changed his college and therefore the route line.

she felt a bit dull and thereafter she seldom smiled

her books remained untouched and in a corner they were piled.

then unable to find any other way to get her friend back

she called him saying I love you, but her heart really sank.

he was pleased to hear it from her beloved

and found his life back, as today she said it.

she was still not as happy as before and pretended to smile

the boy was doubtful and felt that everything was not alright

she did not love him soon he realized.

he told her not to force herself to love him

she looked at him smiling, but his eyes were dim

they once again became the best of friends,

and shared a lot more things, as major part of their days together they spent.

her feelings for him now started to change

and one day in her life something happened that was really strange,

the boy held her in his arms affectionately

and they kissed each other passionately

a few days later she started feeling avoided

between love and confusion her feelings now divided.

she called him up to know whether everything was fine,

he said there wasn't any problem and now he rarely got time.

she was not satisfied and asked him again,

I m confused about the relation he said, and silent she remained.

after you said "no" I was depressed he told,

my feelings for you then I had always wanted to mold.

this is not the real love now I understand

but I'll always want you to be my best friend.

the boy now even stopped talking to her,

he was now getting married to another girl.

he was happy in his world she couldn't even ask how...

because the pretty lady, was in a mental asylum now.

जीवन में बडते वक़्त के साथ
कुछ महसूस करती हूँ..
किसी चीज़ कि कमी
उस कमी पर कभी अफ़सोस करती हूँ
क्यूँ बचपन से इस उम्र तक आते आते ही
हमने कुछ खो दिया
एक खूबसूरत एहसास जिसे शायद पुराने लम्हों में ही बस संजो दिया
अब तो बस यादों में ही याद करके
होठों पर मुस्कान कि एक हलकी सी रेखा उभर आती है
लेकिन हर गुज़रते पल के साथ
क्यूँ उसकी कमी सी बढती जाती है
वो हंसी जो कभी खुलकर हमें गुदगुदा जाती थी
आज क्यूँ चाहकर भी हमारे करीब नहीं आती है
अब तो नकली मुस्कराहट है
नहीं तो कभी एक कडवी सी अट्टहास है
वो बचपन वाली हंसी जीवन के इन अंधेरों में कहीं खो गयी है
अब तो कभी लौट के भी ना आ सके
क्यूंकि शायद हमेशा के लिए कहीं सो गयी है
क्यूँ समय के साथ हम सभी के जीवन में मुश्किलें ऐसे रच जाती हैं
के खुल के हंसने के लिए फिर इस दिल में जगह ही नहीं बच पाती है .........