Dinu's Bill (Dinuche Bill)
Prahlad Keshav Atre
Dinu's father was a doctor. Sometimes, Dinu used to go to his hospital. A lot of people would come there. Some people would come for a check-up. Some people would come for medicines. Some would say "Doctor, my stomach is aching. Please check me up." Some would say "Doctor, tell me how much the bill is."
Dinu would sit on a small chair and see everything, hear everything. By now he could understand several things in the hostpital but still didn't know what a "bill" was.
Once Dinu asked his father: "Baba, what is a 'bill'?"
His father took a piece of paper from the table and showed it to Dinu. "See this. This is a bill. Read it."
Dinu began reading that piece of paper. Written on it was:
For checking the patient ... 10 rupees
Coming to the house twice ... 20 rupees
Medicine (eight times) ... 8 rupees
__________________________________________
Total ... 38 rupees
Dinu was reading the bill for a long time. While reading the bill, he smiled. Who knows what he was thinking? He thought of something. After going home, Dinu went to his room and on a piece of paper, he made a bill for his mother. Written on it was:
Bringing flowers from the garden today ... 50 paise
Taking care of my younger brother for two hours ... 2 rupees
Giving a message to the aunt in the neighbourhood ... 1 rupee
Bringing sugar from the shop ... 50 paise
______________________________________________
Total ... 4 rupees
He went and kept the bill in his mother's room. Dinu woke up early next morning. Four rupees were kept next to his pillow. Dinu picked it up. As he picked up the money, he saw a piece of paper lying there. There was something written on it. He picked up the piece of paper and quickly read it. Mother had made a bill for Dinu.
For bringing (you) up from childhood ... Nothing
Four times, taking care (of you) during illness staying awake day & night ... Nothing
For entertaining (you) with stories ... Nothing
For teaching (you) to read ... Nothing
___________________________________________________________________________
Total ... Nothing
At once, Dinu's eyes were filled with tears. He was choked. The piece of paper fell down from his hand. He took the money as it was and ran to his mother. Without saying a word he gave back the money to his mother, put his head on her lap and began crying.
Mother lovingly patted Dinu, kissed his face and said:
"Dinu, I got what you owed me"
Note: The last line is quite untranslatable from Marathi because it has several hidden meanings. The main culprit is the tricky Marathi word ‘paawna’ which means “to get” in common language. It also means “receiving benefaction from God after sincere prayer”. In a basic sense, it means “Dinu, you got the exact amount as per your bill!” The other meaning for the last line would be that ‘giving that four rupees to you was truly worth it, Dinu (because you have understood a great truth)’.
Grateful thanks to Kiran Dashrath and Aditya Jeurkar for help with the translation.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Gautam Chattopadhyay
Gautam Chattopadhyay was a musician - singer - director - poet - baul - rock star rolled into one. He was the founder of the 70s Bengali band 'Mohiner Ghoraguli' which had an immense influence on modern bengali music.
Gautam-da burst forth with totally new energy, new sound, new stagecraft, new dress code and jolted Bengalis and Bengali music out of their stupor. Though 'Mohiner Ghoraguli' disintegrated at the end of the seventies, Gautam continued his journey of music alone, composing new songs inspiring generations, becoming a myth, a legend, an icon.
This song, written in the eighties talks about the ills of a technological world. It's quite impossible to imagine how someone could have written this some decades ago!
prthibita naki choto hote hote
satellite ar cable er hathe
drawing room e rakha boka-baksho te bondhi
as the world is shrinking / in the hands of the satellite and cable, / held captive in the idiot box kept in the drawing room
ghore boshe shaara duniyar shaate jogajog
aaj hather mutti te ghuche giyecche
desh-kaal shimanar dondi
seated at home, communication with the entire world / is in the fists of our hands, gone away has the / dichotomy of time-space horizons.
bhebhe dekheccho ki?
tararao jotho alokborsho duure
taro duure ,
tumi ar ami jayi krome shore shore
have you ever thought about it? / as the stars light-years away from us, / even further / you are I are drifting apart from each other
shari shari mukh ashe ar jaaye
neshathur chok TV pordai
poka-makoder aguner shaate shondi
many faces come and go, / the eyes are transfixed on the TV screen as if in a trance / just as tiny insects are attracted to fire
pasha-pashi boshe ak shaate dekha
ak shate noy ashole je aka
tomar amar bhadaker noya fondhi
sitting next to each other, seeing it together / yet it is not the unambiguous truth, / just like the tricks played by your and our tenants!
shopno bechar chora karobar
jaegah toh neyi tomar amar
chok dhyadhanor eyi khela shudu bhongi
amidst the business of selling dreams / there is no place for you and me, / though spectacular to the eyes, this game is just a farce.
taar che esho khola jaanalay
poth bhool kore kon raastae
hoye toh peleo pete pari ar shongi
it is better to come out of the open window / we might make a mistake in choosing a path without knowing the way / but there's always a chance of making new friends.
हिन्दी में:
भूमी तो छोटा होता जा रहा है
satellite और cable के हाथ में ।
उस बुद्धिहीन बक्सा में बन्दा है
जो रक्खा है drawing room में ।
कमरे में बैठे सारी दुनिया के संग
बात-चीत आज हमारे मुठ्ठी में है
जगह-और-समय का वह द्वन्द्व
आज दूर चला गया है ।
सोच के देखे हो क्या, बे ?
तारें जितने प्रकाष-वर्श दूर, उससे दूर,
तुम और मैं एक दूसरे से
जा रहें हैं बहु दूर ।
सारे के सारे चेहेरे आते हैं और जाते हैं
आँखे TV परदे को देखते हुए नशे में
ठीक जैसे कीड़े-मकोड़े आग से आकर्शित हैं ।
पास-पास बैठे, एक साथ जो देखा
एक साथ नही है जो सच में है एका
तेरा-मेरा किरायदार का नया खेल जैसा !
सपने बेचने का यह बड़ा कारोबार
जगह नही है तेरे और मेरे लिये
देखने मे तो है शानदार
लेकिन असल मे खोखला खेल है ये ।
उससे बेहतर है के आओ खुले खिड़की से
सफ़र के कोइ रस्ते पे भूल हो जए
मगर नये संगत भी तो मिल जए !
Gautam Chattopadhyay was a musician - singer - director - poet - baul - rock star rolled into one. He was the founder of the 70s Bengali band 'Mohiner Ghoraguli' which had an immense influence on modern bengali music.
Gautam-da burst forth with totally new energy, new sound, new stagecraft, new dress code and jolted Bengalis and Bengali music out of their stupor. Though 'Mohiner Ghoraguli' disintegrated at the end of the seventies, Gautam continued his journey of music alone, composing new songs inspiring generations, becoming a myth, a legend, an icon.
This song, written in the eighties talks about the ills of a technological world. It's quite impossible to imagine how someone could have written this some decades ago!
prthibita naki choto hote hote
satellite ar cable er hathe
drawing room e rakha boka-baksho te bondhi
as the world is shrinking / in the hands of the satellite and cable, / held captive in the idiot box kept in the drawing room
ghore boshe shaara duniyar shaate jogajog
aaj hather mutti te ghuche giyecche
desh-kaal shimanar dondi
seated at home, communication with the entire world / is in the fists of our hands, gone away has the / dichotomy of time-space horizons.
bhebhe dekheccho ki?
tararao jotho alokborsho duure
taro duure ,
tumi ar ami jayi krome shore shore
have you ever thought about it? / as the stars light-years away from us, / even further / you are I are drifting apart from each other
shari shari mukh ashe ar jaaye
neshathur chok TV pordai
poka-makoder aguner shaate shondi
many faces come and go, / the eyes are transfixed on the TV screen as if in a trance / just as tiny insects are attracted to fire
pasha-pashi boshe ak shaate dekha
ak shate noy ashole je aka
tomar amar bhadaker noya fondhi
sitting next to each other, seeing it together / yet it is not the unambiguous truth, / just like the tricks played by your and our tenants!
shopno bechar chora karobar
jaegah toh neyi tomar amar
chok dhyadhanor eyi khela shudu bhongi
amidst the business of selling dreams / there is no place for you and me, / though spectacular to the eyes, this game is just a farce.
taar che esho khola jaanalay
poth bhool kore kon raastae
hoye toh peleo pete pari ar shongi
it is better to come out of the open window / we might make a mistake in choosing a path without knowing the way / but there's always a chance of making new friends.
हिन्दी में:
भूमी तो छोटा होता जा रहा है
satellite और cable के हाथ में ।
उस बुद्धिहीन बक्सा में बन्दा है
जो रक्खा है drawing room में ।
कमरे में बैठे सारी दुनिया के संग
बात-चीत आज हमारे मुठ्ठी में है
जगह-और-समय का वह द्वन्द्व
आज दूर चला गया है ।
सोच के देखे हो क्या, बे ?
तारें जितने प्रकाष-वर्श दूर, उससे दूर,
तुम और मैं एक दूसरे से
जा रहें हैं बहु दूर ।
सारे के सारे चेहेरे आते हैं और जाते हैं
आँखे TV परदे को देखते हुए नशे में
ठीक जैसे कीड़े-मकोड़े आग से आकर्शित हैं ।
पास-पास बैठे, एक साथ जो देखा
एक साथ नही है जो सच में है एका
तेरा-मेरा किरायदार का नया खेल जैसा !
सपने बेचने का यह बड़ा कारोबार
जगह नही है तेरे और मेरे लिये
देखने मे तो है शानदार
लेकिन असल मे खोखला खेल है ये ।
उससे बेहतर है के आओ खुले खिड़की से
सफ़र के कोइ रस्ते पे भूल हो जए
मगर नये संगत भी तो मिल जए !
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Celebration means...
A winter evening.
Four friends.
One barsaat.
Four glasses of chai.
(OR)
Hundred bucks of gas.
A rusty old bike.
And an open road.
(OR)
Maggi noodles.
A hostel room.
4.25 a.m.
(OR)
3 old friends.
3 separate cities.
3 coffee mugs.
1 internet messenger.
(OR)
Rain on a hot tin roof.
Pakoras deep-frying.
Neighbours dropping in.
A party.
(OR)
You and mom.
A summer night.
A bottle of hair oil.
A head massage.
Gossiping about absent family members.
You can spend
Hundreds on birthdays,
Thousands on festivals,
Lakhs on weddings,
but to celebrate
all you have to do is spend your time
and keep in touch with your loved ones.
हिन्दी में:
उत्सव का मतलब है:
पूस कि रात
चार दोस्त
एक बरसात
चार कप चाय
(या)
१०० रु का पेट्रोल
एक खटारा मोटरगाड़ि
एक खाली सड़क
(या)
म्यागि नूड़ल्स
हास्टल का कमरा
सुबह कि ४:२५
(या)
तीन पुराने साथि
तीन अलग शेहेर
तीन काफ़ी के प्याले
एक इन्टर्नेट मेसेन्जर
(या)
गरम छत के ऊपर बारिश
पकोड़े तेल मे तलते हुए
पड़ोसी आते-जाते हुए
एक दावत
(या)
तुम और माँ
एक गरम रात
तेल का एक शीशा
सिर कि मालिश
रिशतेदारों के बारे में गपशुप करते हुए
आप जनमदिन मनाने के लिये हज़ारों,
त्योहार मनाने के लिये लाखों,
और शादियों के लिये करोड़ो रुपय खर्च कर सकतें हैं।
लेकिन सच में उत्सव मनाने के लिये, आपको सिर्फ़ कुछ पल अपने भाई-बन्धुओं के साथ बिताना है।
A winter evening.
Four friends.
One barsaat.
Four glasses of chai.
(OR)
Hundred bucks of gas.
A rusty old bike.
And an open road.
(OR)
Maggi noodles.
A hostel room.
4.25 a.m.
(OR)
3 old friends.
3 separate cities.
3 coffee mugs.
1 internet messenger.
(OR)
Rain on a hot tin roof.
Pakoras deep-frying.
Neighbours dropping in.
A party.
(OR)
You and mom.
A summer night.
A bottle of hair oil.
A head massage.
Gossiping about absent family members.
You can spend
Hundreds on birthdays,
Thousands on festivals,
Lakhs on weddings,
but to celebrate
all you have to do is spend your time
and keep in touch with your loved ones.
हिन्दी में:
उत्सव का मतलब है:
पूस कि रात
चार दोस्त
एक बरसात
चार कप चाय
(या)
१०० रु का पेट्रोल
एक खटारा मोटरगाड़ि
एक खाली सड़क
(या)
म्यागि नूड़ल्स
हास्टल का कमरा
सुबह कि ४:२५
(या)
तीन पुराने साथि
तीन अलग शेहेर
तीन काफ़ी के प्याले
एक इन्टर्नेट मेसेन्जर
(या)
गरम छत के ऊपर बारिश
पकोड़े तेल मे तलते हुए
पड़ोसी आते-जाते हुए
एक दावत
(या)
तुम और माँ
एक गरम रात
तेल का एक शीशा
सिर कि मालिश
रिशतेदारों के बारे में गपशुप करते हुए
आप जनमदिन मनाने के लिये हज़ारों,
त्योहार मनाने के लिये लाखों,
और शादियों के लिये करोड़ो रुपय खर्च कर सकतें हैं।
लेकिन सच में उत्सव मनाने के लिये, आपको सिर्फ़ कुछ पल अपने भाई-बन्धुओं के साथ बिताना है।
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