VALENTINE'S DAY

Valentine's Day is fast approaching. I knew about this special day about five years ago though my association with the concepts of love, its expression and the related experiences that form part of our sweet memories at a latter stage, is age-old.

I also observed some Hindu fundamentalists condemning this day tagging it as bad and westernized. I am not with their views or acts in this regard. If a day can unite people and help us promote love and prosperity across the regions and cultures, let's not oppose it. We must live together, love others, and die after living a happy life as far as we can manage it.

Love is an essential element in our body and mind. We must not bury it there. Let's express it to the deserving ones and feel that we belong to many. There are no restrictions upon us to love anybody. Liberty, equality and fraternity can be achieved when we love others fairly and decently and permit others also to reciprocate the same in a manner they like to do it.

I am not a great poet or writer. I put my absurd or abstract or dreamy ideas somewhere so that others can interpret them as per their knowledge, standpoint or imposed preferences. I have the habit of writing this and that in my mother tongue Telugu also, now and then. Being a regular and devoted reader of the famous Telugu daily Eenadu, I often check for any contests they conduct for their readers. It is happening this time also.

They publish a special feature titled "Eetharam" every Saturday, exclusively with content related to youth in India and how they are progressing in thier lives or in positively impacting others's live. Improvement at personal level or contributing for the development of our society or nation is what all an energetic and visionary youth can do for this nation.

Last year they invited love poetry in Telugu and offered some cash and consolation prizes celebrating the Valentine's Day as a newspaper at their end. I sent an entry by a post card but it was not selected nor even published in it. I did not mind it because it is the task of the appointed judge to finalize some as winners. That time it was Chandra Bose, a young and considerably famous Telugu cine song writer, that scrutinized the entries and decided the prize winners. I love him for his skills and experience in his field because I can't write even one influential or attractive cine song like him.

This time it is Ananta Sriram, a very young lyricist writing interesting, influential and attractive songs for Telugu films and other occasions, that is going to act as the judge for the selection of winners for this Valentine's Day entries at Eenadu's office at Somajiguda in Hyderabad or elsewhere in the twin cities. This fellow wears thick glasses and I presume it could be because he is affected by some level of sight problems due to excessive reading or hard work in some other front to enrich his skills. I read about him in this daily only once. He originated from simple and testing background of family and society. He eventually turned a self-starter and self-made man. I love his creative, polished, sensitive and soft words addressing participatns of the famous "Black" program on Eenadu television channel, along with two other invited guests.

This time the prizes from Eenadu newspaper are as follows:

First Winner: A cash prize of 2000 rupees.

Second Winner: A cash prize of 1500 rupees.

Third Winner: A cash prize of 1000 rupees.

Ten consolation prizes, the nature of which is yet not declared by them.

Ananta Sriram is youth. Mr. Chiranjeevi Raju is also youth (serving 33 any problem to consider me so or what!). The deal looked fascinating to me. A postcard costs 50 paise in India. There is a spark/speck of creativity in me that emerges once or twice a year. So, I moved ahead this morning seeing the related ad in Eenadu.

The last day for receipt of the entries at their end is 10 February 2009, Valentine's Day falling on 14 February 2009. Perhaps Ananta Sriram works hard for three days to finalize the winners, going through the heavy load of entries received on postcards.

This afternoon I posted three postcards: One written by me and on behalf of me, the second one written by me but sent on behalf of Srujana Devi and the third one partly written by me and sent on behalf of my great artist friend Veeranjaneyulu.

Veeru is so sensitive that he asked me not to add his name or address on the postcard. I wanted to kill him secretly but my common sense and conscience did not allow me to do it. This artist fellow, whom I know for the last eight years or so, loves beautiful girls and females a lot and paints everything adding exceptional beauty to it but he does not like his name also being added to some poetry pieces also which he strongly feels in his heart. He got two girls as inspiration for his paintings. One belongs to Visakhapatnam district and she was married some years ago. The other one belongs to Bihar, who studied at the University of Hyderabad at our time and thereafter moved to the US marrying a software engineer in their community. I don't reveal her name because Veeru kills me. He believes that admiration is so sensitive issue that one should not share the related person's name also before one's death. What a shame to India and its sensitive people and artists? I am quite different from him. I shout/bark like a dog if I like somebody and some did/may not like it. Not a problem.

What is meaning to human life if you don't love anybody and say something to her or him. Come on! We don't live for 200 years. We live short. We must make it beautiful and tasteful using the resources God provided us inside and outside us.

So, I would type out my piece of poetry on love, which I sent to them this afternoon as my entry, in Anglicized (I forgot the right word to use here)Telugu here under, first:

Manassu Geeche Vichithra Chithram Prema

Hrudhayam Likhinche Pavithra Pathram Prema

Kalalaku Kalhalhaku Jeevam Posedhi Prema

Amruthaanni Vishaanni Samangaa Chooshedhi Prema

Okari Kosam Manasaara Edvagaligithe Adhi Prema

Manishini Manishigaa Unchagalige Prapancha Prakhyaatha Mandhu Prema

On behalf of Srujana Devi:

Neevu Naa Theeyani Ice Cream

Nenu Ninu Veedani Bubble Gum

Manam Kalisi Puttani Pranaya Kavalalam

Kalisi Brathike Prema Pakshulam

On behalf of my artist friend Veeranjaneyulu:

Naa Madhilo Cherina Nee Roopam

Naa Gundello Velige Kaartheeka Deepam

Neevu Naaku Cheruvaina Dhooramaina

Naa Aathmaku Praanham Pose Dhevatha

The second piece representing Srujana Devi is entirely written by me but sent on her behalf with her notice and acceptance. I would let you know who this person is on 23 March 2009 posting a long blog on this blog site. Some might already know it.

The piece sent on behalf of Veeru is not entirely his own. He told me a small sentence being inspired by my information that I am sending two entries from my abode to meet the challenge posed by Silent Killer Ananta Sriram. I refined his words and put his heart in another format adding the second and the fourth lines from my heart. He liked it. I often feel like killing him because he is so sensitive that he often fears/hesitates/doubts even to gift a bunch of sweet bananas or grapes or apples to some beauty he likes, thinking that she might not know how to eat them. Ooph! He was living in 14th century! What a friend I got? How long and how far can I educate him when my own love stories and attempts turned bad many times. Oh God! Save me from this sensitive creature.

I shared these pieces of poetry in Telugu quite in advance with you to let you believe that I write some stuff in Telugu also now and then to awaken others and make them believe that I exist on this earth and feel something toward some people or things now and then at least. Do or die! Chiranjeevi does it!

I know that many of my blog readers are not familiar with reading, writing or understanding Telugu but I leave the suspense to you. You can consult some of your Telugu speaking friends or acquaintances and beg them to translate the feelings and notions and the spirit of this poetry for God's sake, if not for your sake!

In case, you turned helpless in the process, I would post the essence of each of the lines of three pieces of poetry, some time before or after this Valentine's Day.

While Ananta Sriram struggles with my pieces of poetry and other entries, you must do your part to understand these pieces and me in a way because I wrote them mostly.

I would inform you if this young and dynamic judge chooses me, or my two agents, as some kind of a winner. Work in progess. Take diversion. Sound Horn Please!

Get moderately mad or manageably sad or appreciably creative this time also to express your love to your beloved one/s in a manner that does not disturb or hurt other/s directly or indirectly. After all God gave us this precious life to feel it and share it with others on some occasions at least, if not on all days and nights. Make it happen and thrive! Yo yo!

My innocent and tricky and mischievous brother Chiranjeevi and ditto photo Nagarjuna often remark at me, "This creature does not write in Telugu or what? What a shame? He is living and breathing in Andhra Pradesh! Should we ask him to flee to some desolate island or what? Let's give him time!"

I got an occasion to pay these two creatures in the same coin. Shyguy came out with his set of little poetry.

Hurray!

I have won the match.

Thanks for your patience!

With courtesy,

Datla Chiranjeevi Raju,

Hyderabad,

5:40 PM IST.