Memories of No Consequence

By Bhaskar Dasgupta

This book is a collection of writings, which include a play and several poems written for the family.

Umrao Mary Jaan (based on the Urdu novel written in 1899 by Mohammad Hadi Mirza) is the tragic story of a talented, beautiful, courtesan from the court of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah in Lucknow. The story is told through the eyes of a Victorian woman ,Mary Jane (Mary jaan) ,whose life runs in parallel and is inexorably inter-linked with Umrao Jaans life and shared tragedy. The story unites the different strands of human, social and political events - the rise of British imperialism and Raj, turbulent late nineteenth century India, devastation of war, the exploitation of women both in Mughal India and Victorian England, and the heroic story of two exceptional women who rise above this maelstrom to form a unique bond as a beacon of humanity.

The book then follows with a collection of poems written for family occasions. Sometimes trivial and often sentimental vividly reliving mundane day-to-day events. The verses aptly qualify for the title of the book, Memories of No Consequence, tempered by the alchemy of persistence eternal.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris UK
• Release date: Jul 29, 2015
• ISBN: 9781514461471

Bhaskar Dasgupta

Bhaskar Dasgupta’s obsession with music and Indian classical cultural heritage was nurtured by his childhood as depicted by the essay “House without Walls” within this book. Music has maintained pole position within a wider curiosity for all strands of the Indian cultural heritage; inspired by heroes such as Ashoka, Akbar, Jayadev, Kabir ,Tagore, and Nazrul. His love of Best of India, Best of Indian has led to several original musical and dance shows staged in London by him and his wife Dalia. These include Kavita K2K, Kahata Kabir, Maatri-Chinta, Kaun Banega Vidyapati, Guldastaa ,Gulbageecha and the forthcoming show juxtaposing Tagore and Nazrul in Sheydiner Dujon. He and his wife, Dalia, hold an open house for established and rising touring musicians and run the charity Chhandam dedicated to unifying the subcontinent’s diverse heritage. Bhaskar maintains his musical and cultural interests alongside an internationally renowned career as clinician and researcher with special interest in the conditions giant cell arteritis, polymyalgia rheumatic and large vessel vasculitis. He works as consultant rheumatologist at Southend University Hospital and is visiting professor at Anglia Ruskin University and honorary professor at Essex University. He is honorary president of the medical charity PMRGCAuk.

Book preview

Memories of No Consequence

Umrao Mary Jaan A Musical Play

with

Neeshtha & Other Family Poems

By

Bhaskar Dasgupta

Copyright © 2015 by Bhaskar Dasgupta. 711517

Library of Congress Control Number:   2015910805

ISBN:   Softcover       978-1-5144-6148-8

             Hardcover     978-1-5144-6146-4

             EBook           978-1-5144-6147-1

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Rev. date: 07/28/2015

Xlibris

0800-056-3182

www.xlibrispublishing.co.uk

‘And into that gate they shall enter, and in that house they shall dwell, where there shall be no cloud nor sun, no darkness nor dazzling, but one equal light, no noise nor silence, but one equal music, no fears nor hopes, but one equal possession, no foes nor friends, but one equal communion and identity, no ends nor beginnings, but one equal eternity.’

– John Donne

Contents

Foreword

Umrao Mary Jaan

The House without Walls

Poems for the family

Time Boating

Two Planets in my Sky

‘For you Dati, a thousand times….’

Nineteen on Nineteenth

Neeshtha

My Hero in a Half Shell

Scheherazade

19-6-91

A Hand Over

Sharing Ghalib

A concert of flowers

Bienvenidos Bambino Bienvenidos Ari

Kisses for Missus

My cup of tea

Anirupal

The Curator’s Gemstone

A great railway Journey

The Colour of water

A work song for Mrs Madeline Nurse Whitlock:

Humsafar

Plato & Socrates, intellects tipped with fur

The hearts’ two parts

My El Dorado

You have a boy!

The Best of India, the Best of Indian

Foreword

‘’My Dad’’.

Has always been the answer.

Admittedly, at the various phases of my life when asked said question, he has faced stiff competition from the likes of (and not limited to!) Spot the Dog, He-Man, Leonardo (the Ninja Turtle not the artist, embarrassingly), The Red Power Ranger, Ian Wright, the Economist Muhammad Yunus, Thierry Henry, Ban Ki-Moon, Sachin Tendulkar, my personal tutor at University, Malala, Barack Obama to name just a few…

So what’s the question?

Well let me articulate it through the privilege of introducing this book.

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Firstly, I should start by saying I insisted on having full and final editorial sign off on this foreword, quite literally liaising directly with the publisher- were it up to dad he would most certainly veto what I have written due to his natural personality and aversion to flattery and compliments. Apologies Dad (Baba)!

So, where to start? Well I thought of describing how I see dad through my own eyes.

As opposed to the modern, often hyperbolic understanding of the term- ‘polymath’, derived from the Greek translation, ‘polymathes’ describes in its purest form a person simply who has expertise that spans a significant number of different subject areas.

I think of the above description and just comparing against my own compilation of Baba’s various professional and extra-curricular ‘hats’ gives credence and I’m sure others would volunteer even further strings to his distinguished but always understated bow.

However and again borrowing from ancient Greek language, the description I feel even more appropriate and synonymous with Baba (and that he himself would be more comfortable with I am sure) would be that of the far less used term, a ‘Philomath’.

What is a Philomath? A Philomath is a lover of learning, a relentless seeker of knowledge, wisdom, virtue and facts.

I truly believe it is this relentless thirst and appetite for knowledge that permeates every sinew of this book; such a rich, varied collection of works can only come from a perspective broadened by years of learning, reading and most importantly - curiosity.

In fact, relating to our own childhood, above almost all else, the main feature of our upbringing (my sister and I) would be Baba’s constant attempt on broadening our own horizons- ‘above all else you must always be curious, son’ is a recurring sound bite as I grew up.

In explaining the underlying theme of this book it seems apt to explore the first autobiographical piece in this book- ‘a house without walls’ (pg 37). As Baba explains, he grew up metaphorically in a ‘house without walls ‘and both our parents have always insisted on cultivating the same environment for their own children, Shruti (my younger sister) and I.

To me, growing up in a world without walls meant simply encouraged to sample the widest variety of experiences, try to achieve all we set our minds to, and (try to be) well rounded people – we were supported and encouraged to take part in such a broad range of activities to enhance our perspectives- a run through of my own list includes sport, drama, art, music, academia, debating, chess, books, food and much more (plus not even mentioning my more talented little sister’s list!) . Shruti and I, especially as we grow older, appreciate that