Category: Poetry

Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi, NM

(Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi —an ex Naval Officer, possesses a multifaceted personality. He served as a Senior Advisor in prestigious Supercomputer organisation C-DAC, Pune. He was involved in various Artificial Intelligence and High-Performance Computing projects of national and international repute. He has got a long experience in the field of ‘Natural Language Processing’, especially, in the domain of Machine Translation. He has taken the mantle of translating the timeless beauties of Indian literature upon himself so that it reaches across the globe. He has also undertaken translation work for Shri Narendra Modi, the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, which was highly appreciated by him. He is also a member of ‘Bombay Film Writer Association’.

We present Capt. Pravin Raghuvanshi ji’s amazing poem “~ Unravelling… ~”.  We extend our heartiest thanks to the learned author Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi Ji (who is very well conversant with Hindi, Sanskrit, English and Urdu languages) and his artwork.) 

~ Unravelling… ~ 

☆ 

“……”

“……”

“……”

Could you grasp anything…?

or did it simply

pass you by…?

Don’t pause

Don’t linger

Just—

walk parallel to me

Perhaps—

something…

will unfold on its own

and what remains unread—

all along, that meant to be said

will unravel itself in time..!

☆

~Pravin Raghuvanshi

 © Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi, NM

Hemant Bawankar

☆ What difference does it make? ☆ Hemant Bawankar ☆

(Poetry based on incident occurred on February 28, 2026, a missile strike destroyed the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ elementary school in Minab, southern Iran, killing 100+ people, most of them schoolgirls.)

Shshsh…shsh

Quiet… quiet…

Here sleep

more than a hundred small girls

who had set out to study.

They went to study…

but could’nt return

and

were put to sleep

in those small graves

in a terrifying graveyard…

From this,

the world’s remaining small girls

their relatives

and

humans unworthy of being called humans…

What difference does it make?

 

Those innocent girls

didn’t even know that…

What is a country?

What is a border?

What is religion?

What is race?

What is a friendly country?

and

What is an enemy country?

They believed that

the sun is one

the moon is one

and

this earth belongs to all.

Their entire world

started from home

and ended at school.

After eating-drinking, reading-writing

would get lost in parents’ embrace.

Then,

to whoever targeted

and fired a missile on their school…

What difference does it make?

 

We have become addicted

to watching wars on TV

like video games…

In this game of destruction

now we don’t see

schools and hospitals

cities anndd buildings

turning into ruins.

Luxurious peaceful lavish lives

getting buried

cities ruined

and

beautiful gardens

getting destroyed.

Now… children, men-women and elders

however, they live or die,

What difference does it make?

 

We had much to learn

Then what did we learn?

From rulers becoming dictators…

From Nagasaki’s atomic explosion…

From torture camps…

From gas chambers…

From gas tragedy…

From shadow of terror…

From poison of religious fanaticism…

From COVID pandemic…

From wars and massacres…

Now, to the hopeless maniacs…

What difference does it make?

 

The peace award – seeker of future

is perhaps sleeping somewhere…

Most people have turned indifferent

and rulers have gone mad…

It is necessary to remind them, as per poet Habib Jalib* —

The person who was seated on the throne here before you

He too had the same conviction of being God himself.

Explaining to them is impossible,

What difference does it make?

 

The flame of hope

has not been extinguished…

It wasn’t said without reason in Atharvaveda **.

“Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”

“The whole world is one family”.

Therefore,

my words

are words without borders

which wherever they reach

reach carrying message of humanity

reach carrying message of peace.

Now don’t say that— from this

What difference does it make?

Difference does matter,

from message of peace and humanity…

Difference does matter…

Difference surely matters!

 

* Habib Jalib – A Pakistani Shayar and his shayari

तुम से पहले वो जो इक शख़्स यहाँ तख़्त-नशीं था 
उस को भी अपने ख़ुदा होने पे इतना ही यक़ीं था^*

“Tum se pehle wo jo ik shakhs yahan takht-nashin tha,
Us ko bhi apne khuda hone pe itna hi yaqin tha.”

** Atharvaveda – The Atharvaveda is the fourth Veda among the four Vedas of Hinduism (Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda, and Atharvaveda)

© Hemant Bawankar

Pune, Maharashtra. India

Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi, NM

(Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi —an ex Naval Officer, possesses a multifaceted personality. He served as a Senior Advisor in prestigious Supercomputer organisation C-DAC, Pune. He was involved in various Artificial Intelligence and High-Performance Computing projects of national and international repute. He has got a long experience in the field of ‘Natural Language Processing’, especially, in the domain of Machine Translation. He has taken the mantle of translating the timeless beauties of Indian literature upon himself so that it reaches across the globe. He has also undertaken translation work for Shri Narendra Modi, the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, which was highly appreciated by him. He is also a member of ‘Bombay Film Writer Association’.

We present Capt. Pravin Raghuvanshi ji’s amazing poem “~ Janani —the Creator… ~”.  We extend our heartiest thanks to the learned author Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi Ji (who is very well conversant with Hindi, Sanskrit, English and Urdu languages) and his artwork.) 

~ Janani —the Creator… ~ 

☆ 

She is mother—

and she is daughter

She is love—

and the life that holds it together

She is the quiet elder

and the laughter of generations

She is every kinship

in myriad names

She toils—

she teaches

she leads

She flies the skies

and steers the roads

she heals

she builds

She guards the frontiers

and carries the weight of peace

What is she not

In the all-encompassing

grand form of the Divine

every form

finds its beginning in her

She is origin

she is

Janani—the Creator..!

(Inspired by Shri Sanjay Bhardwaj Ji’s poem जननी) 

☆हिन्दी साहित्य – मनन चिंतन ☆ संजय दृष्टि – जननी ☆ श्री संजय भारद्वाज ☆

☆

~Pravin Raghuvanshi

 © Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi, NM

Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi, NM

(Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi —an ex Naval Officer, possesses a multifaceted personality. He served as a Senior Advisor in prestigious Supercomputer organisation C-DAC, Pune. He was involved in various Artificial Intelligence and High-Performance Computing projects of national and international repute. He has got a long experience in the field of ‘Natural Language Processing’, especially, in the domain of Machine Translation. He has taken the mantle of translating the timeless beauties of Indian literature upon himself so that it reaches across the globe. He has also undertaken translation work for Shri Narendra Modi, the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, which was highly appreciated by him. He is also a member of ‘Bombay Film Writer Association’.

We present Capt. Pravin Raghuvanshi ji’s amazing poem “~ My tribute to INS Hamla… ~”.  We extend our heartiest thanks to the learned author Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi Ji (who is very well conversant with Hindi, Sanskrit, English and Urdu languages) and his artwork.) 

~ My tribute to INS Hamla… ~ 

(Here is my tribute to INS Hamla and Commodore HS Chopra, NM, which he commanded with such deep affection, elan and unwavering commitment.

The imprint of his leadership was unmistakably evident during my recent visit—an establishment that has truly grown from strength to strength under his stewardship.

The retaining wall he envisioned and created stands as a silent sentinel, effectively arresting the relentless march of erosion, safeguarding both land and legacy.

The state-of-the-art facilities that have since come up are nothing short of remarkable—reflecting foresight, precision, and a pursuit of excellence that defines naval ethos.

I still recall our first visit here in 1979, when we came to play cricket… and then again in 1980 for training—memories etched in time, now layered with a sense of pride at what this place has become.

Today, INS Hamla stands as a rare gem in the illustrious repertoire of the Indian Navy—an enduring testament to vision, dedication, and purposeful leadership.)

Here it is nestled in the nature’s serene lap,

Silvery waves dance in an endless rhythmic clap

*

Whispering breeze through swaying palms roam,

And every tide adorns the heart of dear home

*

Resplendent shore where tranquil splendour lies,

Here sea meets the earth beneath vast open skies

*

Each grain of sand, each breeze that softly moves,

Still holds the nostalgia of our youthful grooves

*

Years may have passed and journeys far may roam,

Yet memory’s tide returns us to this beloved home

*

For here were shaped the dreams we came to be-

In Hamla’s boundless grace beside the timeless sea

☆ 

~Pravin Raghuvanshi

 © Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi, NM

Shri N. Padmanaban

www.e-abhivyakti.com welcomes Shri N. Padmanaban. 

Writer’s intro:

There are journeys that are measured in miles, and there are those that unfold quietly within the chambers of the heart. The life of N. Padmanaban belongs to the latter—a gentle, unhurried unfolding across languages, landscapes, and lived experience.

Born in the southern soil of Tamil Nadu, with no early acquaintance with Hindi, he stepped into the wide and varied world of the State Bank of India as a young Probationary Officer. The years that followed—spent across the Bhopal circle, in the towns and cities of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh—were not merely years of service, but of silent absorption. Amid ledgers and responsibilities, another education was taking root: the slow, attentive learning of a language that was not his own, yet gradually became a trusted companion.

Hindi came to him not as an academic pursuit, but as a living presence—heard in conversations, shaped in classrooms during his tenure as Chief Instructor at the Staff Training Centre in Indore, and deepened through his travels as an Inspecting Official across the country. It was in these moments, woven between duty and movement, that language began to reveal its deeper music.

And then, as often happens in lives lived with quiet attentiveness, music itself entered more fully. Hindi film songs, with their rich emotional landscapes, and the steady cadence of All India Radio bulletins, became both teacher and muse. Over time, what began as a means to understand, turned into a means to feel.

In the stillness that followed retirement, translation emerged—not as an act of literal conversion, but as an offering. For he understood, with the sensitivity born of long reflection, that songs cannot be carried across languages word for word. Their rhyme, their rhythm, their cultural echoes often remain rooted in their native soil. Yet, their essence—the tender ache of love, the quiet resilience of hope, the searching questions of life, the gentle stirrings of faith, and the deep, unspoken current of patriotism—these can be felt, gathered, and re-expressed.

It is this essence that N. Padmanaban seeks to bring into English—carefully, respectfully, almost as one might carry a flame from one lamp to another, ensuring it neither flickers nor fades.

Now settled in Bengaluru, he lives a life marked by simplicity and inward richness. At eighty, his days are not a summation, but a continuation—of listening, of reflecting, of translating not just songs, but the many shades of a life thoughtfully lived.

In his work, one does not merely find translations. One finds a quiet bridge—between languages, between regions, and perhaps, between the outer world and the inner quest for meaning.

English rendition of the original Hindi song ज़िंदगी के सफ़र में गुज़र जाते हैं जो मक़ाम... from the Bollywood movie: Aap ki Kasam

☆ Turning Points in Life You Had Crossed Do Not Revisit You Again… ☆ English rendition by Shri N. Padmanaban ☆

 

Turning points in life you had crossed

Do not revisit you again.

Flowers bloom, people meet;

Flowers those wilted in winter,

Do not bloom afresh in spring.

 

People who had fallen apart in a jiffy

Do not meet again even after 1000 days.

Even after several calls life long

They do not respond.

Turning points in life you had crossed

Do not revisit you again.

 

Don’t blindly believe your eyes,

What you see is not what you get:

Suspicion is the foe of friendship, friends

Harbour it not in your bosom,

Lest you may feel sorry later.

Myriad best wishes may not

Fetch your dear friend.

Turning points in life you had crossed

Do not revisit you again.

 

Mornings dawn, nights follow

Time keeps ticking

In a blink, it goes ahead.

Mornings and evenings,

Days and nights

Once gone, gone for ever.

Turning points in life you had crossed

Do not revisit you again.

 

Credits:

Name of the film: Aap ki Kasam (1974) Lyricist: Anand Bakshi Singer: Kishore Kumar Music Director: Rahul Dev Burman

 

Lyrics of the original Hindi song in Devnagri script:

☆ ज़िंदगी के सफ़र में गुज़र जाते हैं जो मक़ाम ☆

ज़िंदगी के सफ़र में गुज़र जाते हैं जो मक़ाम 

वो फिर नहीं आते, वो फिर नहीं आते 

ज़िंदगी के सफ़र में गुज़र जाते हैं जो मक़ाम 

वो फिर नहीं आते, वो फिर नहीं आते।

 

फूल खिलते हैं, लोग मिलते हैं 

फूल खिलते हैं, लोग मिलते हैं 

मगर पतझड़ में जो फूल मुरझा जाते हैं 

वो बहारों के आने से खिलते नहीं 

कुछ लोग इक रोज़ जो बिछड़ जाते हैं 

वो हज़ारों के आने से मिलते नहीं 

उम्र भर चाहे कोई पुकारा करे उनका नाम 

वो फिर नहीं आते, वो फिर नहीं आते।

 

आँख धोखा है, क्या भरोसा है 

आँख धोखा है, क्या भरोसा है 

सुनो दोस्तों, शक दोस्ती का दुश्मन है 

अपने दिल में इसे घर बनाने ना दो 

कल तड़पना पड़े याद में जिनकी 

रोक लो, रूठ कर उनको जाने ना दो 

बाद में प्यार के चाहे भेजो हज़ारों सलाम 

वो फिर नहीं आते, वो फिर नहीं आते।

 

सुबह आती है, रात जाती है 

सुबह आती है, रात जाती है, यूँ ही 

वक़्त चलता ही रहता है रुकता नहीं 

एक पल में ये आगे निकल जाता है 

आदमी ठीक से देख पाता नहीं 

और पर्दे पे मंज़र बदल जाता है 

एक बार चले जाते हैं, जो दिन-रात सुबह-ओ-शाम 

वो फिर नहीं आते, वो फिर नहीं आते 

ज़िंदगी के सफ़र में गुज़र जाते हैं जो मक़ाम 

वो फिर नहीं आते, वो फिर नहीं आते।

 

फिल्म का नाम : आप की कसम (1974) गीत: आनंद बख्शी गीतकार : किशोर कुमार संगीत निर्देशक : राहुल देव बर्मन 

 

English rendition : Shri N. Padmanaban

Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi, NM

(Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi —an ex Naval Officer, possesses a multifaceted personality. He served as a Senior Advisor in prestigious Supercomputer organisation C-DAC, Pune. He was involved in various Artificial Intelligence and High-Performance Computing projects of national and international repute. He has got a long experience in the field of ‘Natural Language Processing’, especially, in the domain of Machine Translation. He has taken the mantle of translating the timeless beauties of Indian literature upon himself so that it reaches across the globe. He has also undertaken translation work for Shri Narendra Modi, the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, which was highly appreciated by him. He is also a member of ‘Bombay Film Writer Association’.

We present Capt. Pravin Raghuvanshi ji’s amazing poem “~ Criterion… ~”.  We extend our heartiest thanks to the learned author Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi Ji (who is very well conversant with Hindi, Sanskrit, English and Urdu languages) and his artwork.) 

~ Criterion… ~ 

☆ 

On a white canvas        

colours arrive uninvited—

they spill, collide, breathe

and the silence of white

begins to shape a meaning

They call it art…and

a crowd gathers to celebrate

 

On a white sari falls

one stray drop—

and the same white

turns into judgment

The pallu trembles

not with wind,

but with probing eyes

Another crowd gathers—

to correct, to contain…

 

How paradoxical

these lines  are

—where colour is freedom

and where it becomes stigma

 

The canvas may bear

a thousand reckless strokes

and be called alive

but a woman must

remain unblemished white

 

The painter pauses—

what if the frame wore the sari

and the woman the canvas

would color still be a crime

or be seen as truth…!

(Inspired by Shri Sanjay Bhardwaj Ji’s poem मानदंड) 

☆हिन्दी साहित्य – मनन चिंतन ☆ संजय दृष्टि – मानदंड ☆ श्री संजय भारद्वाज ☆

☆

~Pravin Raghuvanshi

 © Captain Pravin Raghuvanshi, NM