Porobas.MUC Second Issue 2017 by Sampriti Munich

পরবাস.MUC

স

ীিতর বা ািলয়ানার মুখপ

বা ষকী সংখ া ১৪২৪

Restaurant Suhag St-Martin-StraĂ&#x;e 58-68, 81541 MĂźnchen www.dinu-family.de are

Proud Signature Sponsors of

This issue of পরবাস.MUC is released on occasion of

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Contents / সূচীপ 8

জামােন জীবনান - ডঃ শ ামল দাশ

ি য় কিবর ওপর গেবষণা কের ড েরট লাভ কেরেছন। তঁ ারই কলেম জীবনান জীিবত হেয়েছন জামান পাঠকেদর কােছ ।

Travelogue - Dolomites hike Goutam K Tanti

20 Seven days of torturous trek in Italy with an

international team. Nature's bounty more than ﬁlled the cup of tiredness and exhaustion.

Guest Column - Soma Das

10 Life has its own plans that can disrupt even our best laid plans. Such was her plan that never saw daylight

ছাটগ - সরি ত

12 িবেদেশ ভল

েন উেঠ িক হল অর েপর ? থমথেম আবহাওয়ায় হাড়হীম ছাটগ । সত ঘটনা অবল েন

Travelogue - Sedlec - Dip Nag

27 An easter trip that witnessed artistic marvels manifesting from man's bizzare curiosities Travelogue - Captivating Israel - Rohit Ghosh

30 A tourist's diary of a world torn by war but united by ancient beginnings

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Contents / সূচীপ স

ীিত ও আমরা - অি ব ানা জ

17 ছয়মােসর স

ীিতর অ রমহেলর কথা

Quest - Rupam Bhattacharya

19 A collage of moments across the world

Bong Connection - Avana Maity

34 Discovering Bengal away from home

Kaleidoscope of Moments Sonia Ghosh

38 Third person in a dialogue

Off metamorphosis - Ankitaa Bhowmick

43 A radiant ''probashi'' butter ly comes out of her cocoon

Poem - Santanu Mohanta

A Selfish Dream

Poem - Tufan Das

Life

কিবতা - সামনাথ পাল

এক বস স ায়

Poem - Somnath Pal

Life is a mysterious journey

Poem - Ushashi Basu

Not an adjective

কিবতা - ঋিষতা দ

শহর কলকাতা

বা লেনর চালিচ রনদীপ ধেরর ক ােমরায়

Portraits of Munich by Sanjukta Sen ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 3

Sampriti Executive Committee 2016 -2017 Shaibal Giri president@sampritimunich.org

Anubhab Dasgupta secretary@sampritimunich.org

Ranajoy Malakar joint.secretary@sampritimunich.org

Pulak Mandal treasurer@sampritimunich.org

Sutapa Basu culture@sampritimunich.org

Rajdeep Ghosh events@sampritimunich.org

Amritayan Sarkar sponsorrelations@sampritimunich.org

Anirban Basu think.tank@sampritimunich.org

Aparna Mukherjee communications@sampritimunich.org

Dip Nag dip@sampritimunich.org

Ananyabrata Pramanik ananya@sampritimunich.org

Monolina Das monolina@sampritimunich.org

Dipayan Sil dipayan@sampritimunich.org

Ratnadip Sinha sports@sampritimunich.org

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পরবাস.MUC PUBLISHER

Sampriti München e.V EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Shaibal Giri

MANAGING EDITOR

Anirban Basu

COVER DESIGN & ARTWORK

REACH US

Sagarika Sen Sanjukta Sen

MAGAZINE FEEDBACK magazine@sampritimunich.org GENERAL QUERIES sampriti.munich@gmail.com excom@sampritimunich.org WEBSITE www.sampritimunich.org

Sampriti München e.V

Sitz : München VR205960 Kontoinhaber : Sampriti München e.V Geldinstitut : Deutsche Skatbank IBAN: DE70830654080004890108 BIC: GENODEF1SLR

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স

াদকীয়

বােসর বা ািলয়ানা িক ? উইেকে পুেজা ? দেশর

জন মনখারাপ ফসবেকর পাে ? নািক দুবছের একবার দেশ িগেয় সারা বছেরর শাড়ীেকনা আর ভাজনপব সারা ? আর দেশর বা ািলয়ানাটাই বা

িক ? সকালেবলা অিফসগামী গািড়েত এফএম ?

দুপুরেবলা ডকারস লেন লা ? নািক স াহাে সাউথিস মেল সপিরবাের হানা দওয়া ?

িবগত দশবছের দশিবেদশ িন বেশেষ সােবক বা ািলয়ানা কাথায় যন মূহ মান। নটি এর যেগ বা ালী আর ন নমুখী নয়। েলর বাংলা এক পরী ামুখী বাধকতা, গ ে র গূঢ়াথ িকংবা পালােমৗেয়র রামা িসেলবােসর পাতায় হািরেয় যাওয়া এক িবরি । নতন বাংলাগােন এে ােজেনর গ , নতন বাংলা িসেনমায় সংলাপ কম, সুইটজারল া বশী। বাসী এমিনেতই মর িম পািখ

... নটি এর যেগ বা ালী আর ন নমুখী নয়। েলর বাংলা এক

পরী ামুখী বাধকতা, গ ে র গূঢ়াথ িকংবা পালােমৗেয়র রামা িসেলবােসর পাতায় হািরেয় যাওয়া এক িবরি ।

িহেসেব কলি ত, তােত এেস িঘ ঢেলেছ াইপ আর ফসটাইম। যি র বাড়বাড়ে অশীিতপর বাবামা মেয়জামাইেয়র চােপ এখন ছটেছন াটেফােন জীও ভরােত। আর মেয় জামাই আটলা স থেক হায়াটসঅ াপ সের পরবােসর ছ বঁাচাে । এমনই এক সি েণ ‘স ীিত’র জ । বােস যার কানন েদেশ যার মনন। যখােন দুগাপুেজার সূ ধের সংগঠন সৃ হয়িন, কালীপূেজার সূ ধের দুমােস ঘণ ধেরিন। উ রপাড়া আর খড়গপুর যখােন মেনর মানুষ পেয় মধ রােত শ বািজ কের হােস। যখােন চ ননগেরর তিলর টােন মু হন নতাজীকন া, সত িজেতর স ীেত যখােন সৃ হয় অনবদ নৃত িশ । লাজুক বালুরঘােটর িশ ীস া যখােন আিব ত হয় মে , কসবা যখােন শাড়ীর আেলাড়ন তােল সহজপােঠ। বাবা-মােয়র িভেড় যখােন সরগরম হয় িপকিনক আর পড়েত পা েয় যখােন িনি হয় দুগাপুর। ‘স ীিত’ একটা সংগঠন নয়, স ীিত আমােদর সবার আেবগ। বাস

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যখােন েদশ, বা ািলয়ানা যখােন অিনণীত এক মানিসক ব ন। এই ব েনর এক নাম সেরনাটা ১৪২৪, য উপলে ‘স ীিত’র এই বা ষক পি কা পরবাস.MUC

পুনরায় কািশত হল। িব ত এই কমকাে অজ ধন বাদ াপ

অেনেকর। আপনারা - থম সংখ ার পাঠক পা কা যঁারা আমােদর সুিচি ত ম ব

পা েয় অনু ািণত কেরেছন, দশকব - যঁারা বারবার সমৃ কেরন আমােদর উেদ াগ, হিদশ দন আনােচকানােচ থাকা অনািব ত বা ালীর, িব াপনদাতারা - যঁােদর অনু হ আমােদর বল, আর ব পিরজন - যঁারা একবােক লখা িদেয় এই পি কা ভিরেয় তেলেছন। স ীিত স দায় আমােদর সংসার, তাই তােদর সাহােয র জন ধন বাদ িদেয় আর ছাট করব না। তেব িবেশষ উে খ করব, এই পি কা কােশ অিনবাণ বসুর িনরলস অবদােনর কথা । ভাল থাকেবন । ধন বাদে ,

ধান স

াদক

Editorial

s the amaryllis bloom and the bluebells rise, I have the pleasure to welcome you to another issue of Porobas.MUC our yearly magazine released on occasion of SERENATA 1424 - the spring musical. It has been an unprecedented year in Sampriti’s outreach activities where each milestone bettered the other as we swelled in size. This also manifests in the vast diversity of contributions here, ranging from an haunting short story to a tireless trekking experience to the metamorphosis of a newcomer to the city. The quality rich content is sure to appeal to your literary buds. Like always, it is never enough to thank you readers for having appreciated our first issue with your feedback, our audience who patronize our every event with their presence and our sponsors without whom Sampriti’s phenomenal journey could have never been smooth. A note of gratitude to our guest contributors who have enriched this issue with their creations and last but not the least, congratulations to the the vast talent pool within the Sampriti family whose creative output is the essence of this publication. Anirban Basu, stands out with his tireless effort in putting to shape this literary collage.

Editor-in-Chief

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জীবনান দােশর অ ি ত কিবতার অনুবাদ ডঃ শ ামল দাশ

সময় মুিছয়া ফেল সব এেস সময় মুিছয়া ফেল সব এেস, সমেয়র হাত

সৗ েযের কের না আঘাত মানুেষর মেন য সৗ য জ লয় কেনা পাতার মেতা ঝের নােকা বেন ঝের নােকা বেন ন

ও িনেব যায়- মুেছ যায় পৃিথবীর পুরাতন পথ

শষ হয় - কমলা ফল, বন, বেনর পবত মানুেষর মেন য সৗ য জ লয় কেনা পাতার মত ঝের নােকা বেন, ঝের নােকা বেন

Alles löscht die Zeit aus Kommt Zeit, löscht sie alles aus; Der Zeiten Hände jedoch können der Herrlichkeit nicht antun; Die Herrlichkeit, die im Menschengeist das Licht der Welt erblickt, fällt nicht hernieder im Walde wie welkes Laub. Fällt nicht hernieder im Walde wie welkes Laub. Gestirne erlöschen; der Erde alte Pfade werden verwischt; Zu Ende gehen - Blüten der Orange Wälder Hügel der Wälder. Die Herrlichkeit, der Welt erblickt, fällt nicht hernieder im Walde wie welkes Laub.

( ময়খ । ১৩৬১-৬২ প ষ/ জ )

শ ামল দাশ (জ ১৯৩৭) জামািন আেসন সেতেরা বছর বয়েস। িমউিনেখ কািরগরী িশ ায় াতক িশ ালাভ ও কমজীবেনর র । ১৯৬৮ সােল গােথ ই উেট কমজীবন র কের ২০০২ সােল অবসর হেনর মােঝ ২৫ বছর ভারতবেষর নানা শহের থেকেছন। তারই মােঝ ছেলেবলার আেবগ জীবনান র কিবতার ওপর ড েরট লাভ কেরন এবং অনুবাদসািহেত জীবনান দাশেক জামান পাঠকেদর কােছ প েছ িদেয়েছন। বতমােন িমউিনেখর উপকে অটারিফংএ ায়ীভােব বসবাস কেরন। জীবনান ছাড়াও জামান সািহেত ম া া া সন, র াক ইত ািদর কিবতা উপহার িদেয়েছন। 8

Eines November-morgens Eines November-morgens tröpfelt Tau auf Augen Haare Münder hernieder; Amseln sind es, sie lösten ihn aus. Drei Amseln streiften am Amlabaum vorrüber im November Nass und Sonn; geschlüpft kamen sie auf die Erde, um ihr erneut zu entffiehen ? In meinem Leben habe ich unzählige Amseln ausgemacht, Wo halten sie dennoch inne diese drei Amseln jetzt ?

কা তক ভাের: ১৩৪০ কা তেকর ভারেবলা কেব চােখ মুেখ চেলর ওপের

য িশিশর ঝরেলা তা' শািলক ঝরােলা বেল ঝের।

আমলিক গাছ ছঁ েয় িতনেট শািলক কা তেকর রােদ আর জেল আমারই দয় িদেয় চনা িতন নারীর মতন; সূয? না িক সূেযর চ েল ( ঊষা, শারদীয় । ১৩৬১)

Shyamal Dasgupta, geb. 1937, Germanist, Indologe, Essayist und Übersetzer. Promotion über den indischen Dichter Jibanananda Das. Unterrichtet seit 35 Jahren am Goethe Institut Deutsch als Fremdsprache; lebt in Otterﬁng.

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That was the plan Guest Column : Soma Das

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...as lush strawberries on the welcome home cake, we would enjoy wonderful memories of times

hree years. At the most four. Definitely not more. Then we would be back home for good, amongst our people, walking on own soil, reveling in the sweet cacophony of mother tongue. Breathing the polluted air with gusto, wading through water logged streets with joyful abandon and munching on street-side delicacies without a care towards hygiene (what is that, anyway?). A short stint abroad. Yes, that was the plan. And, as lush strawberries on the welcome home cake, we would enjoy wonderful memories of times on foreign soil, a mature perspective of life gathered by crossing borders and boundaries, and a burning desire to make a positive difference because we have ‘seen the world’. Not to forget the ‘colourful’ group of Facebook friends to prove our stand against racial discrimination, the occasional streaking of social media status with rainbow colours to cheer those who partnered differently and the miniature replicas of Western monuments struggling to outshine each other on the glass shelves in our spacious three BHK apartment in the ageing city’s most recent nouveau rich neighbourhood. And of course, the cushions of safety money resting peacefully in various fixed deposit accounts of the bank where we would always be ‘non-residents’. Or was that supposed to be the main gain from the plan? Never mind now. Well, that was the plan. But as plans go, more often than not they are upstaged by more practical ones; of course, for the betterment of all and sundry. You may remember, the one thing that was drilled into us while growing up in our Boroline brand middle class families was, ‘Riksh nibi na’ (Do not take risk). And so we didn’t. We conveniently forgot much, ignored many niggles of doubt and feigned indifference towards motley shards of advice. But ‘Riksh nibi na’ stayed put where it had been planted by our safely-employed, wisely-spending, pension-planning parents. The words still rang in our ears as one of the last pieces of advice flung at us by the boisterous battalion of family who fell over each other and craned their necks (some encased in Spondilosis collars) to keep us within sight till the very last moment as we disappeared round the corner after checking in at the airport (in a hurry to reach newer pastures). Did they all squeeze back into the hired Tata Sumo vehicles to return home, murmuring ‘Dugga Dugga’ as our flight took off? Or did they catch the bus back to save some on the return fare? Come to think of it, we never cared to find out. Our sights and minds had already travelled on. The three years were soon up in the foreign land (which we had started to occasionally call home, as if testing waters). The question loomed in

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every corner of the rented two bedroom flat but fought to find voice in either of us. Finally, one day, we released it. But then quickly recaptured it and tucked it away for another year. After all, moving home after three years was a big job and would take at least a year’s planning. (Did we take even half a year to plan when we moved away from our homeland of thirty odd years?). Anyway, the ‘planning period’ inched on and we did everything but plan a return. Why? Oh come on now! We had changed a lot, given up a lot, adopted a lot and lived a lot differently by then. But we still did not take any riksh. And moving back to the motherland was a very, very big one! Troubling thoughts of the heat and humidity, the ‘unprofessional’ work culture, the lack of amenities, the brash society and concern over the children’s ‘future’ had banished many finer memories and emotions to oblivion. And we calculated these risks while we turned up the heating to battle sub-zero temperatures, struggled with ‘partiality’ at work refusing to call a spade a spade, dreamt of the household help back in that developing nation, heaved great sighs at the Facebook posts of family gatherings and worried over university fees. We thought night and day, mulled over it continuously, whether we were waiting in the toilet queue at McDonald’s or trying to pick the strongest green chillies from the apologetic offering at the local desi shop. We discussed with new found friends while we gathered for anjali at the weekend Durga Pujo (a baffling experience the first time, but then you get used and look forward to wrapping the Dhakai jamdani). Finally, we decided, ‘No, we would do this for our children. Give them what they deserve, tickets to a better life with minimum disruptions.’ We dragged out the year old question and crushed its rearing head with forceful finality. We informed family back home, adding the correct amount of emotion, apology and promises. And then, before we could change our own minds, we applied for the brighter coloured passport, to match those of our children. As if that would squash all impertinent thoughts which dared to challenge the decision. And through the entire process we consoled ourselves with the fact that we had not forgotten the advice of our own people. It has been thirteen years now in the once foreign land (this is now what we think of and call home). Did we really do it for our children? Or, did we just make them pawns in a game which they neither understood nor had any interest in playing? Are we better off? We culled what we thought was the most important question but many still remain. They float in and out of our newly furnished home, travel with us on the Underground, swirl in our cup of English Breakfast tea. We live a very different life and have shed many of our ways from the previous one. We are now guests in our motherland, choosing to visit only when conditions are favourable. We bring up our children very differently trying to be ‘cool’ parents who are ‘friends’. Yet, we are still slaves of our previous life. Because the one thing that we drill into them is ‘Risk nish na.’ Soma is a freelance writer, translator and editor based in London. She sparked a niche literature market by bringing to life classic Bengali novels to the wider international audience. Her ﬁrst work back in 2010 was The Great Unknown (কত অজানাের), based on the widely acclaimed Bengali novel by Manisankar Mukhopadhyay aka Sankar, leading to seven more, ranging from Nabaneeta Dev Sen's personal favourite The Holy Trail - The Pilgrim's Plight (কর ণা তামার কান পথ িদেয়) to Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay's Untilled Earth (মানবজিমন) and The Paper Half (কাগেজর বউ) .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 11

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অ ত মণ কািহনী ছাটগ - সরি ত

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জ ২৯এ আগ , 'সামার ব া হিলেড' টা সামবার পেয় বশ সুিবেধই হেলা অর েপর। শিন-রিবেত ল ন দেখ আজ এক ধা ায় কমি জ ও ঘের িনেত পারেলা।

িন ি েযাগ আেয় ঘাটিত পড়ায় - বশ িকছ পযটন পিরক নায় ইিতমেধ জল ঢালেত হেয়েছ তােক ! সািলসবিরর ানেহ , এিডনবােরা-র চ িড লািরর ট র

বাদ িদেত হেয়েছ; স জেন বশ মন খারাপ তার। সবেচেয় বিশ মন খারাপ হেয়িছল

৭ই ম, যিদন ক ােরা রড-এর 'ম ানইউ বনাম নরউইচ িস ' ম ােচর িকট, কাটেবা কাটেবা কেরও শেষ না

কাটার িস া িনেত হেলা ওেক - দুঃখ এ পিরমান হেয়িছল য িভেত খলার স সারণটাও দেখ িন সিদন। এটা একরকম অভতপূব - িবগত দশ বছের ম ানেচ ার ইউনাইেটড এর এক ম াচও বাদ যায় িন কােনািদন; মােঝ মাধ িমক পেড়েছ, উ মাধ িমক পেড়েছ, ইি িনয়ািরং এর ক া ািসং পেড়েছ, ায় দড়টা বা বী িবে েদর অেশ চ কাল পেড়েছ - িকছেতই ম ানেচ ােরর িত আনুগত কেমিন অর েপর। বঝেতই পারেছন, ম ােচর স সারণটা ত াখ ান করা - যন সবেচেয় বিশ ভােলাবাসার মানুেষর উপর সব চেয় বিশ

অিভমােনর বিহঃ কাশ। িক ল ন আর কমি জ এই জায়গা দু তার 'বােকট িলে ' সেবাপির উপের - এ দুেটা ঘারা িনেয় কােনা রকম আেপাষ করেত নারাজ অর প। লং উইেক পেয় গেলা ভােলা, না পেল উপর খরচা বেয়ও আর একটা প লাগােতা স ক ামি েজর। এ েলা বাদ পরেল তার এই সােড় চার মােসর অনসাইট-টা িনরথক হেয় যত একদম। "খরচা কত হেলা ?" - "বােস ল ন থেক কমি জ £৮.৮০", "এক রােতর হােটল £৭৩", " েবশ মূল ৫....৭.....১১ সব িমিলেয় £২৩" - "ও ভেলই যাি লাম - হপ-অন-হপ-অফ বােসর িকট £১৭" - "সব িমিলেয় ১২২ পাউ ৮০ স "; ঘেরিফের িহেসবটা এেসই যায় অর প-এর মাথায়। যেব থেক নরউইচ ােজে তার নাম অনসাইট তািলকাভ হেয়েছ - তেব থেকই উপির রাজগােরর অ টা মাথায় ঘরেছ তার - সু বাসনা হেলা ইি িনয়ািরং-এর সমেয় নয়া ঋেণর অবিশ অংশটক িম েয় দয়া। িক স বাসনার হােল খব টালমাটাল অব া - অনসাইেটর ময়াদ আেগই বােরা থেক কেম ছয়, পের আরও কেম মা সােড় চার মােস এেস ঠেকেছ। এ জেন স ােয় , িনেজর ম ােনজার ও ইিতপূেব নরউইচ-এ এেস গেড় বসা ঊধতন সহকমীেক বজায় ভৎসনা কের মেন মেন - উপেরা ব াি িলর সমেবত য়াসই তার বাড়া ভােত ছাই ঢেলেছ বেল দৃঢ় িব াস অর েপর। মরার উপর আবার খাড়ার ঘা! ২৩-এ জুন ইংল া ঢঁ াড়া িপ েয় ভাট িনেয় ইউেরা ইউিনয়ন থেক িবি হওয়ার িস া িনেয়েছ - তার ফেল আ জািতক বাজার পাউে র কৗিলন বজায় ব হেয়েছ।ইিতমেধ টাকা বনােম পাউে র মূল িত পাউ ায় দশটাকা কেমেছ যা হেরদের দশ শতাংশ। এেহন িন গািমতা বজায় থাকেল পেরর মােস দেশ িফরেত িফরেত হােত আর িকছই বঁাচেব না। মু ার এই আকি ক অবমূল ায়েন

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অর েপর ভৎসনার েকাপ ােয় , ম ােনজার আর সহকমী েক জািমন িদেয় সটাং িগেয় পেড়েছ িনেজর পাড়া কপােলর উপর। স ভৎসনার জেন ই হেব হয়েতা - কেয়ক িদন যাবৎ কপােলর মধ াংেশ এক বিলেরখা বশ গাঢ় হেয় উেঠেছ। েনর জালনার উপরাংেশর আেনােতা কঁ ােচর ফঁ াক িদেয় মৃদু হাওয়া তার এেলােমেলা

চল েলা বার বার এেন ফলেছ কপােলর সই বিলেরখার উপর। ' স কা এ ে স' - ক ামি েজর নউ ট শন থেক এ েন চেড়েছ অর প- এর পর এিল জংশেন নেম - চতথ াটফম থেক ' টার আংিলয়া'

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ন ধের নরউইচ িফরেব স।

নরউইেচর এক নািম আসবাব িব য় সং ার তথ যি েজে িনেয়ািজত অর প - স সূে ই তার িবেলত আসা। বজায় মণ-রিসক ২৪ বছেরর এই যবক - চাকিরর জেন কলকাতা ছেড় ব া ােলাের এেসেছ ায় িতন বছর হল। সুেযাগ পেলই ঘরেত বিরেয় পের স - ঘরেত অ ত ভােলা লােগ ওর; অিফেসর কাজ ও তার আনুসি ক আয়-ব েয়র িহসােবর য িফিরি িদি লাম, সই রাজনামচার একেঘেয়িম থেক যন একটা মুি

খঁেজ পায় মেণর মেধ । দি ণ ভারেত কণাটক-তািমলনা - করেলর বশ িকছ ব জায়গা ঘের িনেয়েছ ইিতমেধ । িক ছাটেবলার সই িবেদশ ঘারার ইে টা য হঠাৎ সিত হেয় যােব, আজ থেক ছ মাস আেগও সটা ক না করত না স। যিদন অনসাইেটর স টা উঠেলা সিদন থম কথা যটা মাথায় এেলা সটা হেলা 'িবেদশ ঘরেবা'! গত িতনিদন ল ন-ক ামি জ ঘারার অিভ তা তাই তািরেয় তািরেয় উপেভাগ কেরেছ স। ব ািকংহাম প ােলস, তেব ি জ, িবগ বন, ল ন আই - আজ ক াম নদীেত ক ােনািয়ং, িনউটন-রাদারেফাডেদর িশখ া িত ান িন কেলেজর ওয়ািকং ট র; আহা ! মন ভের গেছ তার। "কপাল টা এতটাও ম নয়" আনমেন িফক কের হেস ফলল অর প। পেকট থেক মাবাইল টা বার কের সারািদেনর তালা ছিব িল ল করেত লাগেলা। ফােনর চাজ কেম আসেছ - স সতক বাণী উেপ া কেরই আবার ঢকেলা ফসবেক - কাল ল নআইেত চেড় লাইভ গিছেলা - স িভিডও েত এপয শতাধ লাইক পেড়েছ - সই িবরল দৃ াে বশ অিবভত অর প, অিবভত আেরা বিশ ২২১িব বকার েট তালা সলিফটােত এক িবেশষ কেন র কেম পেড় - ঈি তা। স কেমে র যথাযত িক উ র দয়া যায় এটা ভাবেত ভাবেতই হঠাৎ খয়াল হেলা ন থামেছ 'এিল' শেন । িহেসব মেতা ক ৯ িমিনট বােদ ছাড়েব তার পেরর ন নরউইচ গামী ' টার আংিলয়া এ ে স' ।

তিড়ঘিড় মাবাইলটা পেকেট পুের ব াগপ াক িপেঠ ঝালােত ঝালােত দরজার কােছ এিগেয় আেস - ন টা থামেতই ঝপ কের নেম পড়েলা াটফেম। অদূের এক ইেল িনক বােড আ এবং িবদায়ী েনর নামসময়সূচী- াটফম মা দ শত। তপেদ সটার িদেক এিগেয়, ঘাড় উিচেয় শে পড়ল " টার আংিলয়া/ াটফম ৮/িডপাচার ১৯.২০"! বেলই খয়াল হেলা ৯ িমিনট কই, ন তা ছাড়েছ মা ৩ িমিনেট স সািরর বািক তথ াবলীর িদেক চাখ না িদেয়ই সটাং ছট লাগেলা াটফম ৮এর উে েশ । এ নটা িমস হেল দুঘ া পর িদেনর শষ ন নরউইেচর - তােত বািড় িফরেত িফরেত রাত ১২টা বেজ যােব - এইটা কােনা ভােবই ছাড়া যােব না; াণপেণ ছটেত লাগেলা অর প - ৩৬ সিড় উ রণ, ওভারি েজ ৩০০ িমটার অিত ম কের আবােরা ৩৬ সিড় অবতরণ কের ২িমিনট ৪২ সেকে র মাথায় াটফেম দঁ াড়ােনা ন র থম কামরায় লািফেয় উেঠ পড়ল। সামেনর িসেট কান েম হলান িদেয় জাের াস িনেত লাগেলা। ব ােগর থেক জেলর বাতলটা বার কের দেখ সটা এে বাের খািল - অগত া িজভটা টাগরায় ঘেস বেস পরেলা িসেট। ন ছেড় িদেয়েছ। ায় িমিনট পােচক বােদ খয়াল হল কামরায় স একা - "ইশ ! ভল কের িন ই ফা ....................................................................................................................................................................................................

াস - এ চেড়িছ", বলেত বলেত উেঠ দখেত গেলা দরজার পI শ াপন বাড । দেখই চ ু চড়কগাছ, কাচ জনােরল াস-ই, িক নটাই য ভল - ' টার আংিলয়া নরউইচ' এ না চেড় স উেঠেছ ' টার

আংিলয়া ই উইচ' এ ে েস - সবনাশ ! কেয়ক মুহত িকংকতব িবমূঢ় হেয় ধই ফ ালফ ািলেয় তািকেয় রইেলা স বােডর িদেক। তারপর খািনকটা সি ৎ িফের পেয় মাবাইলটা বার করেলা পেকট থেক মাবাইল বার কের গল করেত গেলা আগামী

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শেনর নাম। গল খািনক গাল গাল ঘের শেনর এক িল বর করেলা বেট তেব তা খেল ওঠার আেগই ফানটা ‘ লা-ব াটারী’ দিখেয় দপ কের িনেভ গেলা। অনবাটন-টা েজাের িকছ ন েপ ধরায় ি ন

জুেড় ীণ আেলা শষবােরর মেতা আ হেলা বেট িক শষর া হেলা না - সারািদন অসংখ ছিব তেল, ফসবক, ইন া ােমর ব লেপা -এর ভার বেয় িদনেশেষ ফান পুেরাদ র দহ রাখল। এিদেক বােডর গােয়

ধই গ েব র নাম - িনেদনপে পেরর শনটা দওয়া উিচত - তাও লখা নই। অতএব এখন উপায় একটাই - ানকাল িন বেশেষ পেরর শেন নেম - উে ািদেকর ন ধের 'এিল' ফরত যাও, কপাল ভােলা থাকেল শষ নটা পেয়ও যেত পাের নরউইেচর। পেরর শেনর অেপ ায় দরজার কােছই দঁ ািড়েয় রইেলা অর প - আর িসেট িফরল না । দরজার কঁ ােচর ওপাের কাশ বা ওই জাতীয় ে র জ ল হাওয়ায় আে ািলত হে - সূয ডেব গেছ বশ িকছ ন হেলা - এখন তার শষ আভা সে র অ কাের িমিলেয় যাে । আেরা িমিনট পিচশ, এভােবই চলার পর - েনর গিত মশ ম র হেয় আসেত লাগল। অ কার তখন বশ ঘিণভত হেয়েছ - কঁ ােচ উিক মের অর প দখার চ া করেলা কােনা শন আসেছ িকনা - িক গাঢ় অ কার কা েয় স িকছই ঠাহর করেত পারল না, অবশ শন আসেছ িকনা স উে গ খব কােলর। দখেত দখেতই গিত আেরা কেম অবেশেষ ন থামল পেরর শেন। শেনর নাম ' সাহাম' - এক েনর বােড বড় কের লখা - তার বঁা িদেক ছাট হরেফ লখা 'এিল', ডান িদেক ' কেনট'; আেলার অভােব বােডর বশ কােছ িগেয় সটা পেড় উঠেত হল। ইিতমেধ ন ছেড় িদেয়েছ, একদৃে অর প তািকেয রইেলা স িবদায়ী েনর িদেক - রােতর কয়াশায় মশ িমিলেয় গল নটা, অিবলে একরাশ কয়াশা ছিড়েয় পড়ল রেলর লাইন ও তার সংল াটফম জুেড়। আধ ফািল চঁ ােদর হালকা আেলা ধঁায়াকয়াশা ঘরা শেন যন িব ার করেলা এক ই জাল। শন আর কই - একটা মা াটফম - তার খালা ছাদ - রললাইেনর ওপাের বড়া দওয়া - াটফেমর অন িদেক ঘন জ ল। থাকার মেধ আেছ দুই াে দু বসার ব , এক েনর চােলর ঘর - িকট ম বা শনমা ােরর অপাের ং র ম হেব হয়ত, আর এক মা কােঠর ল া েপা - তার ভতের ম ম করেছ আেলা - সটা লা- ভাে জ বা না মামবািত - তা বাঝা দু র। অগে র সে িল সাধারণত বশ মেনারম হয় ইংল াে র ক ামি জ কাউ অ েল। িক আজ সে টা এই শেন দঁ ািড়েয় এক হীম শীতল ঠা া অনুভব করেলা অর প - তার কােনর পােশ, ঘােড়র িপছেন রাম িল খাড়া হেয় উেঠেছ। এ এক অপা থব ঠা া, াটফম আ কয়াশার রে রে রেয়েছ স ঠা া, িত িনঃ ােস তার িভতের েবশ কের হাড় হীম কের িদে স ঠা া। জ ােকেটর চনটা গলা অবিধ টেন - মৃদু পদে েপ অর প এেগাল ন চােলর ম টার িদেক। কােঠর খড়খিড় দয়া এক ছাট জানলা - তার িভতের কউ আেছ বেলই মেন হে - িক একদম িন , জানলার বাইের যমন এর প িন েপ অেপ া করেছ তার .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 14

জেন - ঘেরর িভতেরর লাক ও যন একই রকম অেপ ায় আেছ অর েপর। একট ইত তঃ কের শেষ জানালায় টাকা মারেলা অর প - কােনা সাড়া নই, আবার টাকা মারেলা - কােনা সাড়া নই, িপছন িফের চেল যেত যােব - মচ কের খলেলা জানলাটা, ক ভতর থেক জানালা খালার শ নয় - হাওয়ায় ভজােনা জানলা যমন কের খেল যায় - অেনকটা সরকম। ঘেরর িভতেরর মানুষ র দৃ িনব অর েপর চােখর িদেক - স চােখ চাখ পড়েতই, স াৎ কের উঠেলা বকটা। অমন িনজীব দৃ এর আেগ কখেনা

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দেখিন - বরেফর মেতা শীতল স দৃ , এ দৃ ই যন শেনর অ াভািবক ঠা ার উৎস। ব ন রমূ ত হেয় দঁ ািড়েয় রইল জানালার সামেন - তারপর িজে স করল ' ন ট ন ট এিল ?' - আেদৗ িক মুখফেট করেত পারল অর প, নািক সই দৃ অ েভদী - মেনর

পেড় িনেত পাের !

লাকটা মুেখ িকছ বলেলা না - বঁা হাতটা কােটর পেকট থেক বার কের পাচটা আ ুল দখােলা ধ - ৫ িমঃ পর । হাত তালার সময় অর প খয়াল করেলা তার নম-ব াজ ' া সইলর ি েজস', আর খয়াল করেলা তার হাতটা সাংঘািতক রকেমর জখম। স জখম আ েন পুেড় যাওয়ার - চামড়া কঁ চেক জায়গায় জায়গায় কঁ াচা মাংস দখা যাে , স জখম এত তাজা য পড়া হাড়-মাংেসর গ নােক এেলা অর েপর; গা িলেয় উঠেলা মাথা ঘিরেয় উঠল। লাকটা এবার বলেলা ' টক কয়ার, ড নাইট' - িক ককশ স ক র! জাগিতক কােনা আওয়ােজর সােথ তলনা কের তার বণনা দওয়া স ব নয়। গলার র আ েন পােড় িকনা জািন না, িক যিদ তা পােড় - তাহেল বিঝ এমনই ককশ হেয় যায়। হঠাৎ দমকা হাওয়ায় জানালাটা ব হেয় গেলা - অর েপর গাটা শরীর যন অসাড় হেয় আসেছ, আর দঁ ািড়েয় থাকেত পারেছ না; কােনা মেত হঁ াচড়ােত হঁ াচড়ােত একটা

বে িগেয় বেস পড়ল। স পাচ িমিনট তার জীবেনর সব চেয় ল া পাচ িমিনট - কােন বাজেছ ' টক কয়ার ড নাইট', চােখ ভাসেছ পুেড় যাওয়া হােতর পাচটা আ ুল, আর মাথায় ঘরেছ - ৫ িমঃ পের ন।

স দীঘ তী ার অবসান ঘ েয় উে ামুেখর ন থামেলা স শেন - কােনা েম তার কামরায় উেঠ দরজার পােশ প ােসজওেয়েতই বেস পড়ল অর প। শরীর ঠা ায় কঁ াপেছ - চােখ ঝাপসা দখেছ তখনও। তার এ িব হাল দেখ জৈনক সহযা ী তােক ধের িসট-এ বসােলা - জল খাওয়াল। পের এই সহযা ীর সাহচেযই ওয়াশ বিসেন িগেয় মুেখেচােখ জল িদেল ধেড় াণ এেলা ছেলটার। আশপােশ এত েলা মানুষ চলেছ, িফরেছ, কথা বলেছ - সই িনঝম শেনর একাকীে র ভয়টা মশই কেট গেলা অর েপর - জার এক ােসর সােথ খািনকটা মুচিক হািস িমি ত কের বলেলা " বশ একট ভয় পেয় িগেয়িছলাম আজ - Calcutta chromosome সই ভৗিতক েনর রশ টা িন য়ই রেয় গিছেলা মেনর মেধ "। এসব ভাবেত ভাবেতই এিল এেস গল ভাগ েম নরউইেচর শষ নটাও ধরেত পারেলা - এবার ভােলা কের েনর নাম ন র িমিলেয় িনেয় তেব চেড়েছ। রােত সা ভস অ াপাটেম প েছ সামান আহার সের েত গেলা মাবাইল িনেয় - মাবাইলটাও এখন চাজ পেয়েছ -তার মািলেকর মেতাই সও এখন বশ সজীব ও সেতজ। অন হেতই বশ িকছ না িফেকশন দখােলা টংটং আওয়াজ কের। সাশ াল ওেয়বসাইট িলর িনয়িমত হািজরা শষ হেল অর প হঠাৎই ঢকেলা ওেয়ব াউজার ত। আেগর সাচ অনুসাের পুরাতন পৃ ায় এিল থেক ই উইচ এর মধ বতী শন িল মানুসাের িলিপব । সখােন দখাে 'এিল', 'বির- সই এডমু স', ' াউমােকট' তারপর 'ই উইচ', কই ' সাহাম' বা তার পেরর ' কেনট' শেনর তা কােনা উে খ নই! শায়ার থেক এখন বািলশ ভঁ াজ কের হলান .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 15

িদেয় বেসেছ অর প। আর একট সাচ কের পল এই এক স াহ যাবত লাইন এ কাজ চলায় সব ন িকছ েনর জেন রা া বদেল চলেছ সমা রাল এক াক-এ, দঁ াড়াে ' সাহম' নােমর এক পুেরােনা শেন - ধ

িসগনাল এর অেপ ায়। রলদ র থেক সেচতন বাতা দওয়া হেয়েছ কােনা যা ী যন ওই শেন ওঠা নামা না কেরন। ওই রা ার িকেটও এই বাতা ছাপােনা থাকেছ এই স াহ বাবদ। ' সাহম' শন অচল ১৯৬৫ শাল থেক - এই শন এ রেলর কােনা রলকমচারী িনয থাকেব না। পিরত শন েত কউ অবতরণ করেল সাপেখাপ, বন জ বা অন িকছর থেক যিদ িত হয় তেব স দুঘটনায় রল কতপ েক দায়ী করা যােব না। অনুে দ র দু পংিত িবেশষ নজর করল অর প - কােনা কমচারী কতব রত থাকেব না শেন এবং সাপেখাপ, বন জ বা অন িকছর থেক যিদ িত হয়... তেব েনর চােলর ম ত কার সােথ দখা হল তার ? িক সই অন িকছ যার থেক িত হেত পাের ? আেরকট সাজা হেয় বসল অর প - এবার ল করল ' সাহম রলওেয় শন ক ামি জসায়ার'। অিচেরই ওেঠ এেলা উইিকিপিডয়ায় ' সাহাম রল িবপযয়' - ১৯৪৪র ২ জুন ি তীয় িব যে র সময় এক িবে ারকবাহী েন আ ন লেগ যায় - সাহাম শেন ঘেট যায় এক মমাি ক

িবে ারণ। িবে ারণ এমন সাংঘািতক মা ায় হেয়িছল য ৬৬িফট ব াসেরখা, ১৫ িফট গভীর এক িবশাল গত হেয় যায় ঘটনা েল - শন স ূণ ধেস যায়, ৯০০ ইয়াড ব াপী ায় ৭০০ বািড়র ছাদ, দয়াল, জানালাদরজার কঁ াচ ভেঙ যায় - এ দুঘটনায় ২২জন আহত হন - ও দুই ব ি র জীবনাবসান ঘেট - তােদর একজন েনর ফায়ারম ান আর ওপর জন শেনর িসগনালম ান; ি তীয় ব ি র নাম ' া ি েজস'........ সরি েতর সব িকছই কলকাতায়। কলেম, ফারেণ, িচর িনেত পুেরাদ র 'ক ালকাটান'। ায় আড়াই

বছর হেলা আি ক সই কলকাতােক ফেল িমউিনেখ ঘর এখন ী আর এই শহেরই জ ােনা কন া িনেয় । কমসূে এক বদূ িতন কা ািনর ইউেরাপীয় আিধকািরক, সই কােজর দু আনুসাি ক বিশ হেলা চর ঘারা আর তােদর গ শানােনা । তারই ফল র প এই গে র অবতারণা । যার অনুে রণা এক সত ঘটনা - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soham_rail_disaster

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স

সা

ীিত ও আমরা

- অি ব ানা জ

দ

খেত দখেত ছ-ছটI মাস হেয় গেলা িমউিনেখ এ এেসিছ I মেন পের সই িদনটার কথা – থম

িবেদশযা ার কারেণ িমউিনেখর উে েশ যিদন পাির িদেয়িছলাম কাতােরর এর াইেট, একা I স ী বলেত েয়াজনীয় িজিনসপ ও একবক উে জনা I পছেন ছেড় গলাম আমার কলকাতা আর উি

দীঘ যা ার শেষ

আপনজনেদর I

ন ছঁ েলা িমউিনেখর এর মা I িসিকউির র বাধা পিরেয় মালপ সহ প ছলাম হে েলর

দরজায় I র হেলা অন জীবন, অন রকম পথচলা I একI, আ িব াসেক পােথয় কের I এমিন একিদেন পােশ পলাম স ীিতেক I পরম মমতায় আপন কের িনল আমােক ও আমার মেতাই সদ ঘরছাড়া হিপপাসু কেয়কজনেক I কানায় কানায় ভিরেয় িদেলা আমােদর একাকী েবাধ আর িনঃস তােক I স সাহচেযর ফল এই লখা I

ীিতর সই

স ীিত নােমর সে আমার পিরচয় কলকাতা থেকই I আসার িকছিদন আেগ িমউিনেখ ঘেট যাওয়া স াসবাদী হামলার কথা পেড়িছলাম কলকাতার কাগেজ I সখােনই জানেত পাির, বাঙািল সংগঠন স ীিত এবং তার কণধার আমােদর শবালদা ( ীৈশবাল িগির) িকভােব তঁ ােদর পার িরক যাগােযাগেক কােজ লািগেয় সই দুেযােগর িদেন বাঙািল – অবাঙািল িন বেশেষ সকেলর িনরাপদ আ েয়র ব ব া কেরিছেলন I িনঃসে েহ সই খবর মেন জািগেয়িছল িনভরতার আ াস I এক ীে র িবেকেল স ীিতর সে আমার চা ু ষ পিরচয় ঘটেলা তঁ ােদর “নবীনবরণ” অনু ােনর মাধ েম I সিদন দীপদা আর ঊমীিদ ছাড়া সকেলই িছেলন অেচনা I েম সবার সে পিরচয় হেলা , গেড় উঠেলা আ ীয়তা I কেলেজর আেরা আলা াই, এমনিক েলর িসিনয়র নীল ািদর সে ও আলাপ এই স ীিতেতই I আর তাই আজ বাঙািল পিরজন ঘরা এই পিরবােরর আিমও একজন সদস I িবেদেশ অকি ম বাঙািলয়ানার াদ বাধহয় এেকই বেল I ২০১৬র দুগাপুেজা – বােস আমার থমপুেজা I এতিদন কলকাতায় পুেজা িছল ব েদর সােথ ম প পির মাআ া-গ -খাওয়াদাওয়া I িক এখােন পুেজা বলেত Schloss Nymphenburg আর Hotel vitalis. িমউিনেখর পুেজায় হয়েতা নই ম াড ায়ােরর মাদকতা িক আেছ আেবেগর অকি মতা I ফল কাটা– মালাগাথা থেক র কের অ মীর অ িল, সি পুেজা - সেবেতই িছল আমােদর অবাধ যাগদােনর াধীনতা I সে নানা ােদর বাঙািল খাবার ও নাচগােনর সাং িতক আবহ I ভি , িন া আর আেবেগর একিন কাশ য বােরায়াির াচযেক এইভােব হার মানােত পাের, তা আমার ধারণার অতীত িছল I সবই স ব হেলা স ীিতর ছঁ ায়ায় I দখেত দখেত আেলার উৎসব িদওয়ািল এেস গেলাI এখােনও স ীিত আেয়ািজত “Indiana” অনু ান নানা বেণর নানা ভাষাভাষীর মানুষেক এক কের তলেলা I নাই বা পুড়ল বাজী, নাই বা থাকেলা আেলার রাশনাই, নাচ-গান ,হই ে াড় এবং অবশ ই ভারতীয় খানািপনার মধ িদেয় ভের উঠেলা দীপাবিলর সে I দেশ না থাকার অতি েক আেরা একবার ভিলেয় িদেলা স ীিতর ীিত উৎসব I ....................................................................................................................................................................................................

েম ঋতবদেলর পালা শেষ ঘটেলা শীেতর আগমন I বরেফ ঢেক গল গাটা িমউিনখ শহর I তাপমা ার

পারদ মাইনাস কিড় ছঁ ইছঁ ই I িক বাঙািলেক আটকায় সাধ কার ? অপিরসীম উৎসােহ স াহাে চলেলা ছাটেছাট জমােয়ত, জ িদন পালন ইত ািদ – যা সবসমেয় আমােদর সবাইেক িঘের রেখেছ এক বহৎ পিরবােরর িনি , িনর প ব ঘরােটােপ, হভােলাবাসার এক অে দ ব েন I এেক অপেরর েয়াজেন বািড়েয় িদেয়েছ সাহােয র হাত I এই সে িবেদেশ ও িতিনয়ত মেন পিরেয় িদেয়েছ বাঙািলয়ানার াদ I শীতেশষ I আকােশ বাতােস আজ বসে র ছঁ ায়া I ধসর বরেফর চাদর সিরেয় কিতেত আজ জেগেছ ােণর

ন I কেনা পাতাঝরােদর ডােল লেগেছ হালকা সবেজর শ I ফা েনর সই নবীন আনে র সুর লেগেছ স ীিতর পােলও I দিখনা হIওয়ার দালায় সাড়া জািগেয় সও এেসেছ “বস উৎসব” এর ডািল

সািজেয় I তাই কিব র র সে গলা িমিলেয় গেয় উঠেত ইে কের - “আজ সবার রেঙ রঙ িমশােত হেব

ওেগা আমার ি য় তামার রিঙন উ রীয় পেরা , পেরা পেরা ”

Ashmi is a student of computer science at Technische Universität München(TUM), gregarious, passionate swimmer, loves travelling, trekking, sports and music. The Munich incident she read about was the gunman attack of 22nd July 2016, published in The Telegraph from Kolkata in their feature below.

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Quest

Rupam Bhattacharya

Ein Welt Haus, Munich "Have you found it yet?" I look up trying to understand the question. The Australian woman in her mid 40’s, asks again - ”I am asking about the road you were singing about. Did you find your road yet?” I remember now, I was singing “How many roads must a man walk down, before you call him a man” by Bob Dylan few minutes back. I reply - “Nah, I have not yet. But I think I am getting there.” The woman quips - “It’s a process of constant construction and deconstruction. Sometimes, it may seem beyond your reach, but don’t give up.” I smile and bid her goodbye. Chandni Metro, Kolkata

Another hot autumn afternoon in Kolkata. It seems the summer doesn’t want to leave the city pretty soon. The city is running like every other day. My eyes fall on a 8 year old kid. Oblivious of the life around him, he takes a step forward and starts break dancing on the footpath. Couple of people passing by, stand around, visibly amused at his antics. Couple of metres away. I see his family living in a small tent across the street. I wonder what teaches him to dream, when poverty is the only habit his family can afford? 79D Bus, Birati, Kolkata “Peeeep” - the bus honks once again. The conductor takes his head out. Words like “এ ভাই, হা া যা”

and “ও দাদাভাই " come out of the window like a record you have grown up listening to. I stand up and go near the door to get down at the next stop. As the bus approaches a temple, the conductor takes out coins from his pocket and throws them to the temple. And then he sings “আমার ও য মন আেছ কন বাঝ না” Getting down at the next stop, I find a new advertisement billboard - “2BHK/ 3BHK flats available at Rajarhat starting at 30 lakhs.” I get lessons on job, religion, love and real estate within the span of 5 minutes. Our quest for the

unknown, takes us into places we dream of. It’s the dreams that we dream of, makes us do the things we deemed impossible. The 8 year old kid in Chandni, the conductor in the bus, the 40 year old Australian woman, me and dear reader, you as well; we all are living in a sea of infinite possibilities and our quest helps us dig those possibilities. In the end, finding the perfect road does not even matter, as long as we enjoy the ride. “The sky is open and clouds are free. And of course, there is the rootless tree.”

Rupam is a graduate student at Technical University of Munich. Hailing from Agartala, a small city in the north eastern part of India, he currently resides in Munich spending his day programming, making music, hiking or simply doing nothing. .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 19

Venturesome seven days in the dazzling Dolomites Travelogue : Gautam Tanti

They say â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;first times are always specialâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, and it is so true for me too. It was 9th of August back in 2015. Lets start our expedition with the calmness of the water of Pragser Wildsee.

Goutam Kumar Tanti, PhD, Researcher in Klinikum rechts der Isar, Munich, Germany since 2014. A scientist by profession, socialist by heart, he loves music, people and culture, food and foodies, travel and travellers, hiking and hikers, photography and many more. .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 20

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night before I slept at 02.00 and woke up at 05:00 in the

morning. I had slept only for three hours properly and that was quite enough.

A big backpack, my camera and some snacks for the group were my belongings. It was a bit difficult to carry all these. But I was so much involved in that adventure that I did not realise it. I was one minute late to reach to the nearest underground station Richard-Straus Strasse and as a result, I had to wait for 19 mins to get the next one and hence the entire group had to wait for me. I was so embarrassed. But when I offered them puten samosa, they were very happy. They were my group of 15 passionate hikers from all over the world. Two English, one American, one Australian, two Germans, one Dutch, one Swedish, two Russians, one Bulgarian, one Serbian, one Polish and me only Indian and Asian. Unfortunately, no Italian was in the team, which would have been better in an expedition to an Italian speaking location.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s somewhere close to Dalla Capanna Alpina in the trail from Schutzhaus Fodora to Rifugio Lagazoui

Nevertheless, what more can an international group look like ? As the bus moved, my heart started beating faster. This was the first time in life I was going for an adventure of this repute. It was on my travel wishlist since long. Initially I was not in the list, fortunately, a hiker who was in the plan had to drop his plan of joining the Dolomite trip due to some problem and the organiser told me that there would a vacant position in this group and that I can fit in if I wanted to. I was surprised by the offer because I started my hike with him in Munich only recently and that too with a horrible experience in

my very first hike with him! Organising something like this is not easy and straight forward. He had to plan it at least 6 months before and had to inquire and book huts, otherwise accommodating 15 people is not possible in short notice. He took all the pain to make it possible because of the magnetic attraction and pure love for the Dolomites and, he does it every year. He is Chris Humphry, originally from England but he has been living in Munich for more than a decade now. A happy family man, father of two beautiful kids and a fantastic hiker. The American hiker (Paul) was of course always helping him with

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suggestions and always up for any discussion, over a beer of course. Like Chris, he has also been living here in Munich for decades. They are more German than foreigners here. Paul was also the leader of the Klattersteig team that year. Above all, this venture was a success due to unlimited excitement and cooperation from everyone. The unknown fear was increasing and coming to its peak. All of us boarded the bus after packing luggage. To my surprise, my luggage was the largest. Our bus started at 06:35 am from Munich. We reached our trekking point of the Dolomites at 10:45 am. It was close to the Pragser Wildsee which looked really awesome with beautiful green water and an amazing view.

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So when we started our hiking, I anxiously asked my co-travelers, “What will they do if I can’t move anymore”. The girls who were with me that time told me that I have to do or die. Well, that might have been a joke but it made me so strong; so determined. I thought of it as Gandhiji's call for Indian freedom movement ‘Do or Die’. I was so spellbound with amazingly beautiful views 22

Having a beer at Rifugio Nuvolau and experiencing the serenity of nature have become my passion by now.

that I didn’t even realise when it was lunch time and when did we reach our first hut to spend the night. It was my first night to stay in the mountains and as I said before “First times are always special”, like first love. It was so amazingly awesome and memorable. The name of the hut was Schutzhaus Fodora (1968m). There, 3-4 rooms were booked by the organiser for 15 of us. I was praying not to share room with a person who snores. Finally, after all the prayers I found that I was sharing a room with the Dutch guy and the Russian girl. The lady informed us that she always sleeps with a knife, in case someone disturbs her she will protect herself. It was scary, but far better than a

person who snores ! Jokes apart, the hut was minimalistic, having things just enough to survive in the deserted area, but it was better than my assumption. We had become too wet due to sudden rains so we had to keep everything for air drying. Honestly, I could not sleep really well although I should have as I was too tired, maybe because being too much excited about the new experience. In the morning we had breakfast in the hut and resumed our journey. We had to keep walking till we got tired, ate something for lunch and kept walking. The landscapes were so beautiful most of the time that I could not believe that it was really happening. The journey of over 9 hours on

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The perfect location of the hut Rifugio Lagazoui will always wonder you

that day gave me so much exposure took so much energy that I won’t forget it ever. But above everything all were the spectacular views. I will always go hiking, I will always climb the mountain to see this beauty of nature. The trails were breathtaking valley full of greenery and amazing small flowers. While hiking, we met many amazing people on our way, and they were so happy with whatever they were doing, and every one of them were smiling and saying ‘ciao’ which means Hello in Italian. Joy in the heart spreads like the scent. For me, their smile was enough to help me walk for one more day. Although, most of those people were from different countries but I think many of them were

from different parts of Italy. Then we reached our highest point of the trail where our second hut Rifugio Lagazuoi

at 2752 meter of height is located in the beautiful area of the Dolomites. Sunset from the peak Lagazoui Pizo (2778m) which was really close to Rif Lagazoui is a must watch. Also, considering this perfect location, we planned to see the sunrise from this point. We woke up really early in the morning to experience one of the most amazing sunrises. I have never seen the sun waking up so beautifully. We found the perfect location of the hut which was just amazing. I was so much absorbed in the beauty of the sunrise but there was more to come. I was so tired in the first two days that I was the

That’s the amazing group (except one) of our Dolomite trip 2015. From Le t to right, in the front row. Ola, me, Anna, Valentina, Olga, Ruslana, Stephanie, and Lars; in the back row, Andy, Alex, Paul, Johan, Chris and Sebastian. 23

slowest member of our team most of the time. From the third day, I gained momentum. I had become fried brown to black by the heat of the sun, I was walking in front of the slower group. We automatically made two groups - one consisting very fit people who were faster and they were mainly doing Klattersteig, and being not so fast I was in the other group. There was something radiating from inside that gave me energy and force and the warmth to move on. It could be that being the only Indian in that group I didn’t want to make any bad impression, so something was inspiring me, being an Indian, being a Bengali I can do it. I kept walking. Not only did I walk faster but also I jumped and danced with equal enthusiasm. My co-hikers were asking jokingly what did I have for breakfast at the hut Rif Lagazoui. Now, I don’t remember what I had for breakfast but I do remember it could be the energy of experiencing one of the most beautiful sunrises in my life I can’t explain in feelings. When your heart really wants something, the whole body works a little harder to get it. The beauty around and the joy within can’t be expressed in words.

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One of the most amazing time in my entire life, hiking through dolomites and swimming in this lake (Coldai) the mountain beside the lake which gets re lected on the water of the lake (not seen in this picture) is called Monte Civetta.

I didn’t even realise how we spent all day and walked more than 7 hours and experienced Passo Falzarego (2105m), Rif Nuvolau (2574m), Rif Cinque Torri (2137m), Cason di Formin, and Rif Croda da Lago and then reached Rifugio Citta di Füme - our next destination. As the next day was our potential rest day, we had played many different games in the hut till late in the night; we chatted with our group members and cherished the food in the hut. I didn’t even realise that we had already walked more than 50 km until someone told me about it. It was a sunny but lazy day. Most interestingly in the hut of Rif Citta di Füme (1918m)

they had organised music of Dolomites by Alberto Grollo and his costars; which added another layer of awesomeness to the already fulfilled hearts. Who does not like lazing around and baking his tired soul and enjoying live music, that too in the remote mountains ? I chatted with the group members and also to the hut personnel. There were people from everywhere, a teenage Italian girl and a guy from the south part of Italy. They were so young and so full of energy, they told me that they joined the trip to have some experience. We started walking yet again early in the morning

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Let’s meet the happiest hiker I have ever seen, who will always greet you with a smile on her face and always make people happy with her amazing presence, like the beauty of the nature I can’t express with words, I can’t explain how her presence keeps people happy, her friendship is a gem, she is the person who introduced me with these amazing group of people. She is an example of a hiker. All the hikers are like her.

as always and reached Lake Coldai, the best mountain lake so far in my life. Freezing cold water and what an amazing view. We all swam there and some of the somersaults that my Australian co-hiker gave were really amazing. Walking and experiencing the amazing views, we reached a nearby small village. It was time for some drink and food. Our leader, Chris Humphrey, had booked a table there for us in his name. While having a conversation with him the old Italian man in the shop pronounced his name a little

differently which made me laugh unconsciously. Apparently, I offended him and my deep fried skin colour made him think I am from Africa. This made me laugh even harder. My friends told him that I am from India. He seemed happy to know that I was from India and he immediately offered me a place to stay with him. It was so kind of him and I was so fascinated. I was about to accept the offer and then it suddenly occurred to me that I have to come back to Munich as I took off without proper notification. I was happy to

find once again that Indians get along so well with Italians. Thank you Italy and thank you, my friends, for greeting me with this beautiful feeling this time again. After our beautiful experience, we started walking again through the amazing landscapes which looked like a mystic painting on the canvas. A beautiful blend of colours, shapes and of course the magic of the sound of nature. After walking more than 10 hours, finally, we reached our final hut Rifugio Vazzoler. We were supposed to stay there for our last night and then walk down next morning to board a bus back to Munich where our homes were waiting for us. Like everything else on the trip, the hut was fantastic. It had everything in it, amazing drinks and even a guitar in the pub. It was time for a celebration as we all made it through these 7 days, tirelessly walking and that too with those lovely smiles on our face. The atmosphere was full of happiness and joy and nobody complained of the long journey and the endless walks. To me, it was an outstanding experience. I 25

had forgotten all the suffering on earth, and the pain I bore in my heart. I even forgot I had a family back home. And the only expression was my tears. I felt so grateful to Chris for inviting me that I kept thanking him till the last moment. We had many beers and a uncountable number of schnapps, my favourite drink. We thanked the organiser Chris and advisor Paul. People later told me that I hugged Chris several times for his invitation. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t remember how much money I spent at

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that bar and how I went to bed. I just found myself in a room with all the girls the next morning. I was so drunk that my mates thought that they might need to call a taxi to bring me down, but to everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s surprise, I woke up early in the morning and was asking people whether they want to have breakfast. Everyone was looking at me stunned !

True it is when the heart says yes, the body moves along and the journey always ends well.

I too was stunned and asked myself how did I manage that.

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Sedlec: A Bizarre Curiosity Travelogue - Dip Nag

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t was during the Easter of 2014, that we visited Kutná Hora, a small city around one hour from Prague by train. Kutná Hora, or the City of Silver, was one of the richest cities of its time. It boasts of a city center presently designated as a Unesco World Heritage Site for its rich architecture and historical significance.

Although a city famous for its silver mines, yet, in my eyes, it is a treasure-trove of some of the magnificent architectures that the Bohemian kingdom had on offer. However, to an average traveler with a hunger for off-beat marvels of this world, the uniqueness of this place lies in the curious ‘Bone Church’ or the Kostnice Ossuary, better known as the Sedlec Ossuary.

A 15 minutes’ drive from the historic Kutná Hora city center, and situated 200 meters away from the Sedlec Cathedral, this Ossuary is a must-visit place for people with a love for the unusual. Set up in a backdrop which makes you remember some of your favorite childhood fairytale movies, this place offers you a thrilling experience which you would get nowhere else. The Ossuary crypt contains a bone house decorated with 40,000 human skeletons, from people who died of the 1318 plague and the 15th century Hussite wars. The Gregorian chants, aptly aided by the sound of the cathedral organ and the candle-lit ossuary premises add an unusual flavor to the already predominant eeriness of the place.

......what I was witnessing was nothing less than transformation of a man’s bizarre curiosities into artistic marvels.

True to my expectations, the first glimpse of the underground chamber had bought along with it a strange and bone-chilling feeling. Coming from a place which has experienced quite a few famines and droughts, and has witnessed deaths and bloody battles, it was unimaginable for me to think of such an artistic and serendipitous conclusion to such a sad history. Almost instantaneously, it reminded me of my grandmother back home in Kolkata, India, and her probable actions, in case she had to visit a place like this. I was almost sure that this was a place she would never think of entering. In hindsight, I could also not blame her for her reservations, especially when she had gone through the pain of witnessing sad events like the 1943 Bengal Famine, the bloodbath following the partition of Bengal, to name a few. After slipping down the memory lane for a few seconds, I came back to reality to experience what was in front of me. And I must say, what I was witnessing was nothing less than transformation of a man’s bizarre curiosities into artistic marvels. In 1870, František Rint of Česká Skalice arranged the bones and skulls into creative decorations and built what

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stands to date as the Sedlec Ossuary, or, in common manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s word, the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Bone Chapelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. I could never, in my wildest dreams, have imagined that I would be walking under a chandelier made of human bones. Standing in front of the Schwarzenberger Coat of Arms reminded me of every possible human bone I had learnt in the Biology lectures at school. As if this was not enough, it was topped with a human skull like that of a cherry on a cake! To this day, when I sit on my couch on a warm summer morning in Munich, sipping a cup of coffee and thinking of my encounter with Sedlec, I cannot help but wonder about the creativity of the architect. He transformed the last remains of a human body into something which would remain etched in the history of mankind forever. In a way, it serves as a remembrance to all those unfortunates who lost their lives during the famine and the war. Perhaps, it also teaches us to appreciate whatever small things we have in life, to imagine a beautiful future leaving the sorrow remains of the past.

Dip is consultant by profession and wanderer by nature. Likes meeting and knowing new people, loves cricket, hiking and travelling anywhere and everywhere possible.

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A Selﬁsh Dream Poem - Santanu Mohanta

monsoon time quarter past midday a canopy of cloud ceasing the sunlight to come in cold breeze and the shower arrives you are in an ancient room of your long gone grand father yellow dark stained, torn bed cover lying dead a wooden table with scratches, all around holding some ancient books dusty blisters on the morbid wall obscure alphabets inscribed by a child

colours that faded long ago the giant window wide open you are sitting in an easy chair flailing staring through the window you feel the color of rain blue and green staring through the window you feel the wounds and the pain you see tears in every eye the triumph of your selfish dream the mournful world the way you dreamt!

Santanu is a Graduate student at Technical University of Munich. In his free time, he can be found playing some blues guitar or hitting the drums hard! “I am lost in between the questions that I want to ﬁnd myself or I want to lose myself…!”

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Captivating Israel Travelogue - Rohit Ghosh

e spend a lot of time reading stuff on the internet, watching documentaries to have a preconceived notion

about a country and its existence, be it the religious beliefs, political ideologies and its cultural diversity. Well to be honest, after visiting Israel, I have decided to change that belief to a certain extent. This visit to Israel continues to be one of those rare enriching and empowering experiences in my life, which have driven my passion to travel (even) more. In a nutshell, Israel can be defined as country of extremes. Be it in the modern open lifestyle in the capital city of Tel Aviv, the seeds of multi-(religious) belief in Jerusalem (Kingdom of heaven), the beautiful desert landscape in Masada (site of an ancient fort built by King Herod) overlooking the Dead Sea and Jordanian lands, the lovely harbor city of Haifa, the birthplace of the Christian faith (Nazareth and Bethlehem), and finally to the Ghost City of Hebron, which continues to show the true picture of the IsraeliPalestinian conflicts ! I know, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot of stuff for a 10 day trip. And that was what I precisely felt when I was heading back home. It truly feels empowering to know all the stuff happening around and actually being able to see it for real. It definitely is tiring and you just need to recover and move on to the next destination.

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We started our trip in Tel Aviv, a hustling and bustling cosmopolitan, the capital city of Israel. The city provided the diverse historic background of Jaffa which was an ancient port and has been associated with various biblical references, coupled with its amazing modern 21st century architecture and crazy nightlife. After spending a couple of days in Tel Aviv, we drove down to Jerusalem and honestly, it was an eye opener for me, from the ancient religious and current political standpoint. Imagine a city with multiple Israeli settlements connected through a finely crafted network of roads and tunnels, within Palestinian neighborhoods. Imagine an old city which is less than 1 sq. km in area, and divided into different quarters, Jewish, Christian, Muslim and Armenian, because it is considered to the holy site for all these religions. We have read in history books about the Holy Crusades and how thousands have perished over the control of this small piece of land. It simply is a testament to how religion continues to empower the smartest of minds in this world of technology and science. This irony canÂ´t be penned down for sure. You need to see it for real. We followed up our stay in Jerusalem with a single day trip to Hebron-the Ghost City. If anyone is interested in the Jewish Palestinian conflict, one should try to get the story from both sides of the fence. Traveling for me is not only about seeing the historic sites, but also to know more about the reality in which modern people survive. You walk across the street and arrive at an (illegal) Jewish settlement, and all you see is heavily fortified walls, armed security forces, modern roads, bus stands with digital display and a first world country

appearance. You cross the street and enter a Palestinian neighborhood and you will be shocked to find the alarming disparity. Houses tumbling down, shops closed and empty dirty roads reminiscent of the Palestinian cause. Mix it up with IDF soldiers and peacekeeping observers at every corner, and you actually have the feeling of walking through a war zone! It was a day which changed me a lot as a human being, and there is no right or wrong when we choose sides. It is just the sad realization that (religion) tarnishes the very value of human life for a belief which is probably not worth it. On that very evening, we bumped into couple of Americans, who were planning to visit Ramallah, the administrative capital of Palestine. We sneaked across the Israeli borders and visited this beautiful lively city and bumped into couple of local Muslims and probably the most liberal ones I have ever met. We chatted over a few beers about life and their side of the story. And what I found amazing was that, they are just like us, studied and lived abroad, worked in different global entities. But they just decided to return back to Palestine to serve for the cause (not in a violent manner) and doing something about their country and its people. Now back to something more touristic ! We spent the next few days driving around Israel, visiting the ancient fort city of Masada, overlooking the beautiful but salty Dead Sea. We visited the beautiful Grottos of Rosh Hanikra and the wonderful Aquaduct in Caesarea. Then we made our way to the modern port city of Haifa, driving through the Christian holy sites of Nazareth and Bethlehem on the way. Haifa is very famous for being the headquarters of the Bahai religion (most of us know about the Lotus Temple in Delhi being a Bahai temple). With its (simple) human values, it was rather amusing to believe that such a religion originated in a country which has bled to death for centuries for the religious cause.

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The food in Israel is amazing - Falafel, Humus, Kebabs and a whole lot of meat. The nightlife is terrific in the big cities like Haifa and Tel Aviv, probably some of the best technomusic I have ever heard. The people are friendly but very proud of being Israeli, and sometimes it might get on to your nerves. Everyone speaks English and everyone is very social, jovial and happy with life. But as expected, all the best experiences in life come at a price, and the price is very high. In this case though, I was literally talking about the

PRICE which I paid from my pocket ! Because Israel is probably at par with the Nordics and Swiss as one of the most expensive countries I have ever visited. But I can assure you, this country of extremes in every aspect of human life makes it such an enthralling destination to visit. Photos courtesy my friend Avigyan! Please feel free to visit his page on Facebook @avigyanduttaphotography and I am sort of envious of him because he travels even more.

Rohit is passionate about traveling and have already visited around 37 countries across the globe. He is based in Munich and works for a pharmaceutical life sciences company MERCK Group a ter completing his MBA in International Business Consulting from FH O fenburg, Germany. Apart from following his travel ambitions, Rohit likes to spend time socializing with friends in beautiful Munich biergartens and play snooker and various board games. 33

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Bong Connection

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Viewpoint - Avana Maity

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Avana Maity came to Germany for MBA and is now working as a Finance Controller in Munich. Music, dance and riding motorbikes are her passion.

ife is miraculously short and uncertain period of time when one tries to achieve all the goals and fulfil all the desires. But it would be meaningless if this lifetime has to be spent alone amidst all these achievements. Every individual has different reason(s) to leave homeland - be it job, studies or family but it does hurt sometime(s) to

be parted away from the culture, from the language, from the food, from the festivals and from the whole environment what shaped us since our childhood. In the midst of all these foreign attitudes, lifestyles, job environment, which we try to own slowly, we still miss the homely feeling somehow. But when you have the likeminded people around you, there grows a whole

family like Sampriti@Munich. The warmth, the bond there is between all these Sampriti members make me feel more connected to Kolkata, Bengal and more close to the highly treasured Bengali traditions. I have been staying in Munich since past 1.5 years but with the first event of 2017 'বস এেস গেছ' organised by Sampriti I got introduced to many of these wonderful hearts. My thanks to everyone would not be enough who introduced me to my new family in Munich, with whom I can celebrate "বােরা মােস তেরা পাবণ" I have always thought that I am so not homesick, and be it any situation I can adapt myself very well. But when I actually flew to Germany in 2014, I realised that living abroad is much more

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than just taking a step up the career ladder. This new and exciting experience has offered many possibilities but has also confronted me with entirely new obstacles and issues. Learning the local l a n g u a g e , successfully finishing the academics when finally job search came to an end, the fact that this foreign country is for an extended stay, maybe even for good, did not sink in for quite a while. To actually settle in

with my new surroundings I had to discover new hobbies and completely new me. My passion developed in cooking, travelling, exploring new cultures etc. I was almost on the verge of believing that all my Bongness would disappear "Out of sight, out of mind". The simple joys of cooking Bengali cuisine at home all by myself, making sweet delicacies, s i n g i n g

Rabindrasangeet after work, watching some Bengali movies or attending an event within the Bengali diaspora in the city are really satisfying. The belongingness to the art, culture and mindsets intensified exponentially once I found my home connections thousand miles away in Munich. Bengali heritage, tradition, divinity is so much close to me that even living so far away from Bengal, I still deify all of it. "I seem to have loved you in numberless forms, numberless times, in life after life, in age after age forever." - Tagore

The warmth, the bond there is between all these Sampriti members make me feel more connected to Kolkata, Bengal

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চালিচ - বা লন

Photo-essay Ranadeep Dhar

মান াগ িন ট স র রাই সােল . তারপ ৪ য় ৯ হ া ৮ র ার ার ক জন ১ ব বহ আব ব ক রা র ে র া র প া স হ হ ি এর ব ব eichtag ালােম ুনগঠন হসােব ি প প ক ে ক ম ে এ এ পালাে অবিধ নতে েজ র ল া া র া স া স া ন ফ ১ ৯১ ৮ জা ম া ন নরম এবং ড ল ল ছ ি হয় েয় পিত রা র ক রা হ শ ক র া ব বহ ােল ি হসােব ি 1999 স ম ে পালা জা ম া ন

R িহ েমাটের বািড়, পশাগত ভােব অেটােমা ভ

সফটওয় ার ইি িনয়ার। KODAC KB12 িদেয়

হােতখিড়। ছাটেবলার এই ভােলালাগাটা পশা না

হেলও নশােত অবশ ই পিরণত। ইউেরােপ পাচ

বছর, তারমেধ জামািনেত িতন বছর হল বসবাস। মূলত লং এ েপাজার আর পাে ইট বিশ পছে র।

olocaust memorial

" মেমািরয়াল অফ মাডারড িজউস অফ ইউেরাপ" ক "হেলাকা মেমািরয়াল"ও বলা হয়। ি তীয় িব যে র সময় না জীেদর হােত মৃত িজউেদর ারক। এখােন ১৯০০০ বগ িমটার জায়গা জুেড় মাট ২৭১১ খানা কংি ট এর তরী াব আেছ। ধারণা করা হয় সই সময় ায় ৩ ল িজউ হেলাকা এর িশকার হেয়িছল

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ast Side Gallery াধীনতার এক

আ জািতক ারক। এ

বা লন শহর এর ক

েল অবি ত

বা লেনর াচীর এর ১৩১৬ িমটার দীঘ অংশিবেশষ। এেত সারা পৃিথবীর িশ ীেদর 105 পই ং আে য েলা বা লন াচীেরর পূব িদেক

১৯৯০ সােল আঁকা হেয়িছল। এ ই স বত বহ ম ও দীঘতম দীঘ ায়ী ওেপন এয়ার গ ালাির

বা

লন লাইট ফ

ভাল

বা লন লাইট ফ ভাল িত বছর

অে াবর মােস অনু ত হয়, এই সময় শহেরর

সব

আইকিনক

ঐিতহািসক াপত

এবং

েলােক লজার

িদেয় আেলািকত করা হয় । এছাড়া

এক িতেযািগতার মাধ েম থম ৫

জনেক বেছ নওয়া হয় যােদর লজার শা ক াে নবগার টর এ দখােনা হয়

রা

তর বা লন

ী নদী [এই

ী নদীর ওপেরর

ি জ তােতই শাহর খ খান এর ডন ২ এর

ং হেয়িছল]

- বা লন এর িভ টাওয়ার

- বা লন ী মাস মােকট এর নাগরেদালা

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Kaleidoscope of Moments Life hack - Sonia Ghosh

Priscilla was sitting on a grey metal chair in the Munich arbeitsamt office, as the gloom of the cold rainy day percolated through the window panes of the dull room. She has recently relocated from Ukraine to Germany in search of a better life. A two year conflict in rebel-held eastern Ukraine had proved to be a challenge in her promising career as an IT specialist. Pris was a loner. She had this ability to spend hours talking to herself in her mind. As a child, her favorite game was to randomly pick up someone and secretly simulate their responses to different situations of their life. She often emulated Will, the bus driver who dropped her to school when she was 13. Unlike other children, she was not interested in the steering wheels, but the carefree attitude of Will amused her. Though she was smart and quite popular during her bachelor’s, she never actually felt the need of a companion to find happiness. She thought, her thoughts were her best companion. But today, she craved for the warmth of a friend in this foreign land. She felt restless and miserable, waiting for hours in arbeitsamt office in hope of a job. "Ukraine stands fourth in the count of certified IT specialists after US, India and Russia, but the political turmoil would never help me achieve and learn as I deserve to", she murmured. But, the uncertainty in this new episode of her life soon challenged all her confidence. Being a jobless vagabond, unsure of any financial security in future was the last state that she ever pictured herself in. As she waited frowning as a bitter soul, evaluating the possibilities to shine in her career even after the current stream of failures, she got completely consumed with regret for her stupid decision to blindly bank on a bunch of fake promises. “I come from Syria”, suddenly a sharp, determined voice startled her, bringing her wavering mind instantly back to the grey room. “I am Saraah”, the lady sitting right opposite to Pris, continued speaking with minimal gestures, as her eyes conveyed where her words or gestures failed. She was talking to a girl, sitting next to Pris. Then she glanced at Pris, blinked twice and smiled. Pris realized, she was gazing blankly at her, all the time she was doing her mental calculations about the job prospects. Instinctively, Pris blinked back at Saraah with a slight curl on her lips. The girl, sitting next to Pris, sipped her cola, and replied back to Saraah, “I’m Aliza. You know what it means? Aliza signifies the joyful ability to rise above nature. Saraah means happy, right?” Saraah smiled affirming. “Since when are you staying in Munich?” she asked. “Since my birth. My parents are Jewish, and they were born in Germany too. Now, don’t think I’m into money lending” Aliza giggled with her eyes raised to her brows. “I have just finished my bachelor’s in comparative literature from LMU and here I am looking for some decent job from arbeitsamt. How about you Saraah”. .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 38

“I’ve come here 2 months back. Well, I don’t bank on stereotypes Aliza, and so dear, I’d never think you’d be in money lending!” she smiled and continued. “It excites me to tell you that, I had done my master’s in related fields, English Literature it was. Dan Brown’s books are my favorite, though they were not a part of our curriculum. Well, then times changed. Rebel groups emerged in Syria, the university building for English Literature got reduced to a dilapidated ruin. Moral policing started, some of my friends were forced to join the moral police squad, whip their classmates for misconduct and even kill them. The natives of Syria became petty pawns in the hands of external forces, you’d understand what I mean, I’m sure the news of the self-proclaimed saviors are broadcasted in all over the world, just that the New York Times and Moscow Times have amazingly different versions. To be honest, I am also clueless about who the true savior is!”. She gave an icy smile, her eyes rolled up in disdain, ''My dear, I’m not going to give you an account of what women of Syria are going through and make you shudder in fear, but,….” Aliza interrupted, “Please don’t. My grandpa was a holocaust survivor and he too would never talk about World War II. It pained him. But still, he would quote from the Torah that instead of thorns, shall come up the cypress.”

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“Yes”, agreed Saraah, “and to grow that Cypress, we need to join hands. The atrocities are more pronounced in this world because, war-mongers are more active than peace-lovers. But, I assure you dear, there are more peace lovers in this world. Here, in Munich, most NGOs here have put on boards declaring that they can’t accept more volunteer in refugee asylums as there is a huge waiting list of volunteer applications. So, you can pretty well understand how many people are willing to serve and bring back peace. After my narrow escape from the pandemonium that my native has become, I too am serving in such an asylum, reading happy stories and conducting group workshops for kids, who have never seen anything but violence in their 5-6 years of life. Trust me Aliza, after this war and innumerable physical assaults that I’ve gone through, I’m a richer person who has been stripped off from everything that are considered as securities of life. Now I am, with the bare minimum, and that makes me realize how many futile pursuits we have in life! I think, this face of mine, wreathed in smile is a testimony of the fulfillment that I get from my life now.” Till now, Pris was consuming every word that came out of Saraah, forgetting her very existence. The grey drudgery of the surroundings and her notion of absolutism seemed to get dissolved in the stream of words. The very thought that, after being crushed in adversities of a brutal war, Saraah’s virtues shined brighter, swept Pris off her feet. The relativity of this revolving world with all right and wrong seemed like a harmonious symphony. There was a strange, yet strong sensation near her heart or throat, she was not sure exactly where it was; and neither was she sure if the feeling was of expansion, or emancipation, as she has never felt such a thing before in her life. Fountain of deep reverence washed away the feelings of mere pity that prevailed in her mind for the plights of refugees; a tidal wave of moral responsibilities drowned the petty desires. “Me and my impaired minimal self-experience of happiness!” she smiled, as she remembered all the turmoil that was going on in her mind for a job and financial security. Amidst all this tumultuous waves of sensation, a kind of surety was settling in her. ....................................................................................................................................................................................................

She was now certain that the social promises of well-being from a life of conformity is nothing but patterns seen through a kaleidoscope – the colors of individual pieces of glass when seen from the eye-hole of the kaleidoscope are attractive, but handling those pieces without care results in a stream of blood from bruises. In reality, the very thing called security is a castle built in air. Happiness from security of possession or people is ephemeral as the desires and expectations are ever-changing with the wheel of time. There is no greater joy than exploring this evolving horizon of life as a whole, challenging the veracity or stability of the illusions of truth. The true meaning of life unfolds with pushing the boundaries of our bias through serving one and all. Life’s incredible beauty lies in growing through encounters with new experiences. Pris stood up, took a step towards Saraah, held her hands and said: “I’ve walked a light year in few moments while I was listening to you. I know I won’t go back to where I started as I walked in this room today. I don’t know if I can ever convey what you have given me in the past few minutes, but your exemplary character has served as the deepest wisdom I have ever received. I just want to make one promise that I’ll never leave a chance to dive into the mysteries of this life and dedicate it for happiness of all”. Saraah smiled back at her, as Pris walked past the room with no shadow in her wake. A next door girl, brought up in a 1947 building in South Kolkata. where most part of her childhood spent reading myriad sorts of things - ﬁctions to biographies, poetry to gra ﬁti. And, this faith in a world beyond the tangible one has acted as a stimulus to pen down own imagination, which is mostly driven by ideology than experience. Well, "''You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one.''

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LIFE Poem - Tufan Das

LIFE_ A game of some DAYS, An ADVENTURE of an unknown PLACE, Unparalleled events leaving no TRACE, Has many faces; Some very funny, Some too threatening, While, some full of GRACE... LIFE_For some it signifies FREEDOM, A FREEDOM to express LOVE; A Love where A LADY brings up another LIFE, A FRIEND gives up his LOVE for saving a LIFE, A MOTHER sacrificing his son for saving the nation's LIFE... LIFE_For some it’s a PARTY, A PARTY which never CEASES, it just goes ON, A PARTY where MUSIC beats make the HEARTS dance till DAWN, A PARTY having NO Limits, No Boundaries, No DEADLINE; A never ending OUTING full of pumped up ADRENALINE... LIFE_A notice period of some YEARS, For some, FULL of Nautanki & TEARS, Some like risking every moment without FEARS, While some accelerating it on the top GEARS... LIFE_For some it’s THRILL, Always thus they keep on saying "Arey, Bhondhu Just Chill", Seen singing for girls "Kabhi, Toh Mil", And thus keep on playing with multiple "Dil"... LIFE_For some a MISSION, A MISSION having no seat for EMOTION, A MISSION where 'WORK-WORK-WORK' is their only FASHION, A MISSION having multiple critical RELEASES of TENSION...

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LIFE_For some it’s REVOLUTION, A REVOLUTION full of infeasibile ideas & INNOVATION, A REVOLUTION carving the path of a new EVOLUTION, A REVOLUTION where initially we LAUGH & later begins the process of APPRECIATION... LIFE, Speaking truly, is a blend of all this SEASONS, The Mantra "Simple Living, High Thinking" is the only SOLUTION, Implementing whatever you feel without any CONFUSION, FACEBOOK, TWITTER is not the real life, Just an ILLUSION, LIFE is LIFE; Let it flow like WATER, full of REJUVENATION, And here it is this TIME to try for a new TRANSFORMATION...

Tufan works as a Technical Leader providing Automotive SW solutions for KPIT Technologies in Munich. He believes in leading life as an athelete, loves playing Football, Cricket, is an active runner. In his free time he acts photographer cum painter cum writer cum explorer of new places. Believes in living life kingsize.

www.germany.kpit.com KPIT Deutschland – IT-Anwendungen, Beratung und Produkt Entwickung! .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 42

Of metamorphosis... Reminiscence - Ankitaa Bhowmick

hat very word in the title sums up my journey hitherto. It is a journey that, like every aspiring student’s, began with a dream and fruitfully paved way into living that dream.

I came to Munich exactly 4 years ago to start my Master studies in Informatics at TUM, (my Facebook memory popped up today and reminded me as well) and the journey thereafter has been remarkable and positively transformational. In the first week, first time in “Phoren”, my brain signals did go through quite some peaks and troughs. There was so much to conquer, so many “firsts”…. The happiness of being all by myself, the blissful independence, and the loneliness thereafter… Acclimatizing to the weather – beauty of sparkling-white snow eventually marred by its grey gloominess. The interesting and informative international milieu in the university - the awkward inquisitions from internationals about Indian affairs and realization of my own trivial knowledge about international affairs. Overcoming the culture shock, language barriers, style/fashion misfit, Euro-INR conversion for every cent spent. Getting used to NO noise pollution - The silence of the dogs (its almost weird that German dogs don’t bark and German babies don’t cry!!!) Learning to be self-dependant– To start with, cooking, completing administrative paperwork (approaching the German “babus”), lifting the weekly grocery (no rickshaw till doorstep) all on my own! Realizing the importance of our loved ones more than ever - Parents becoming tech savvy in order to stay connected. Digitally-dependant dates with then-boyfriend-now-husband Amit, who was miles away in Bangalore. (Distance bound our hearts closer) Becoming friends with students from our neighbouring countries (read Pakistan/Bangladesh) – the world seems so much more a better place when knowledge and education overpowers belligerence (this point came out more philosophical than I intended) The list could go on and would go on to prove how every storm eventually settles and gives way to beautiful sunshine. Four months on, not only did the European summer finally show its brightest side, I had also successfully completed my 1st semester of Master studies, secured a part-time position in a research institute and travelled a week-long budget-vacation in Italy. Bygone were the probation months and I had accepted Munich (Germany) as my home away from home. As much as I missed my “Desi” humdrum, the present habitat didn’t seem alien either. I was as much in step with the city’s stride as I was with my own aspirations. ....................................................................................................................................................................................................

Back in India, I was a regular 9am-5pm employee in Accenture, Bangalore, where I lived the sort of high-potential-energy-low-kinetic-energy-IT engineer life, encompassed by the mundane. After moving to Munich, there was so much that I was doing beyond my regular course of studies, all of which had a positive transformational affect on my life. I had been working and earning to selfsupport my studies and livelihood. I travelled to different countries and learnt something new with every experience. I learnt to manage time between work, studies, entertainment and selfdevelopment. I was inspired by German lifestyle in order to incorporate fitness and sports as a part of my daily life. I went to treks on weekends, cycled to the lakes in summer, ate salads for lunch and went to the gym to relax after work!!! (Exclamation-worthy for the inherently-bong-self) We organised regular meet-ups within our “desi” gang and I became an expert cook (self-proclaimed). I could pull off an all-nighter (read Party) and be present for a seminar next morning at the university. I was a part of many on-stage dance performances at university, flash-mobs and in our Sampriti group (the last time I did any gyration was in middle school maybe). I learnt how to bake, to swim, to converse in German (also better “Bangla” and some “Urdu”), to thread my own eyebrows, fixing stuff (bicycle punctures to broken valve of washing machine) and so much more. Two Oktoberfest (28 months) later, I graduated with a Masters degree in Informatics. Well begun and half done! The very competitive job market was waiting to grab me in as a highly qualified professional. Or, so I thought. Although I was quite pro-active with my job applications, starting few months before completion of studies, it took four solid months and scores of interviews to finally secure my best job offer. Eventually, all the efforts had fallen into place and I started working fulltime right after my graduation. That was followed by my sprint-wedding in India and Amit’s arrival to Germany and start of his master studies in Kaiserslautern. Life in Munich had new challenges in store. I was faced with the Herculean-task of finding a flat in Munich, improving my German in the process of negotiating with flat-brokers, buying and mounting new/2ndhand/free furniture, more administrative work (Blue card, marriage registration, tax returns, sponsorship letter for parents, etc., etc.), trainings at work, travelling for work, travelling on weekends to meet Amit, planning parents visit to Germany, and life moved on… And life shall go on, jolly well. Challenges in a foreign land ultimately bring about the best in us. And optimism holds our hand to clear the mists and seek the brighter day yonder. I have grown up here, rather “wisdomified”, if I may say. Beer has given way to red wine. Friends have become my family. The strands of grey prove that my brain is running the extra-mile. The metamorphosis has brought the most radiant “Probashi” butterfly out of its cocoon.

"Probashi Bangali" in Being, "Bharatiya" in Make and "Phorener" at Heart. This world feels like home. Computer Engineer by Qualiﬁcation, IT consultant by Profession and a Vagabond by Nature. I take this world as my own. .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 44

এক বস স

কিবতা - সামনাথ পাল

ায়

Life is a mysterious journey Poem - Somnath Pal

খালা জানালা িদেয় নীল আকােশর িদেক তািকেয় মন ভেস জেত চায় সুদূর পাহােড়র সীমানায়,

বাধনহারা আেবগ িদেশহারা রামধনুর রেঙর ছটায় মন য হেয়েছ আজ পিরপূণ কিতর নশায় । রা ায় িন েয়াজন পাতার মশ অনুপি িত জানায় শীেতর অবসান বসে র আগমনী,

কেনা ঝােপর মােঝ নতন ফেলর সৗরভ জাগায় অলীক অনুভিত, আিম িফিরি আনটিন ।

সূেযর স ােলােকর ছটায় নদীর জল সানালী িফেক হেয় যাওয়া ঘােসর নতন আ কাশ িচ ােলােকর দরজায় আজ পেরেছ অ ায়ী তালা মেন আজ সাথপরতা আর আকা ার সহবাস । চঁ ােদর জ াৎ ায় পৃিথবী যন মায়ােলাক শীতল হাওয়া বেয় যায় রােতর িনঝমতায়, তারকাখিচত রােতর আকােশ মেঘর আনােগানা মশ সময় বেয় জায় জ াৎ ার ি তায় । া চােখ ধীের ধীের নােম ঘেমর ঠউ হেয় যায় িন ে আেরা এক িদেনর অবসান, রেয় যায় মেন িকছ ৃিত আর নতন ত াশা নতন িদেনর আশায় মন সাজায় নকশী কঁ াথার মাঠ ...

Life is a mysterious journey It has so many puzzles to solve Every day we fight to survive We are trying our best to evolve Friends are the breath of fresh air after a storm Friendship teaches us right and wrong Life without friendship appears imperfect Friends give hopes and make us strong Parents are the shelter to feel at home They are the way to grow as a person Without them success looks failure With them an animal becomes human Partner comes late but becomes destiny A person suddenly becomes our world Someone to ensure when we are confused A person who will always be there by our side Life is a beautiful journey It has so many things to offer Yet we ignore them We always seek to achieve more

Somnath is passionate about travelling and meeting new people, learning new languages and cultures. He came to Germany 3.5yrs ago as a Master student of So tware Engineering at Hochschule Hof, Germany . He has worked for Volkswagen in Wolfsburg for 2yrs and now working for Avanade which is a joint venture of Accenture and Microso t. Apart from travelling Somnath likes photography, writing and spending time in cooking.

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Not an adjective Poem - Ushashi Basu

My thin skin, lungs, Shrouded over my feeble, decrepit bones I’m slowly eaten away by dark robed ghouls; As I barely live by; Don’t say it – even when you’ve cried a little Don’t say it – even when you’re hungry, and because you had a fight, you’ve slimmed a little, Don’t say it. Don’t say it. Depression is not an adjective. Anorexia is not an adjective. From the alphabets that tango on the page, The recurring twitch, To the paranoia as I walk down the corridor, The constant itch on my neck, my heavy From overwhelming ecstasy today, breathing To the dark room I will lock myself in Tender palms drenched in sweat; tomorrow, Don’t say it – even when you’re panicky, I’m stuck. and you’re scared, Tumbling down Don’t say it. an abyss that begins but doesn’t end. OCD is not an adjective. So stop. My disorder is not your adjective. I toss and I turn, My throat parched, my mind fatigued My eyes adjusted to the white ceiling; Don’t say it – even when you’re awake till 3, sending out texts and completing pending homework. Don’t say it. Insomnia is not an adjective. As I fight my demons, And try to extinguish the fire conjured in my

Ushashi is 18, blogging, sleeping, and living the life. She likes to keep faith and work hard. She is an aspiring science journalist.

শহর কলকাতা কিবতা - ঋিষতা দ

মধ িব , িন মধ িব , গরীব, বড়েলাক একসােথ দখেব চােখর এক পলক

৫ টাকার মুিড় থেক ৫৯৯ টাকার চেকােলট

পােব সব যমন থাকেব তামার নাটস্

াটস্

শহেরর রাদ, ব , ধেলামাখা রা া িদেয়

২৪০ বাসটা রাজ যায় বাদুড় ঝালা লাক িনেয় আবার সই রা ােতই দখা যায় অিড

কনভা বল িব.এম.ডবিলউ, হাইএ বিড হাকেগ যাক লাল-সবেজর লড়াই

তব আমার শহর িনেয় করেবা বড়াই

ীেণ েরর ঘ া, চােচর বল, মসিজেদর আজান আমার শহর কেরেছ সমান আহবান

ক.িস.দাস, ভীম নাগ, বা ারােমর শহের িম দই, সে শ, রসেগা া রাজ কের

তব ঝকমেক রে ারােয় রমরিমেয় চেল মাগলাই কমিত নই সাউথ ইি য়ান, চাইিনেজর বালাই হয়েতা পাে যাে শহেরর অেনক িকছই

তব পা

ােব না বলা বাস, র িব রায় কখনই

বদেল গেছ আ

া িক বদলাইিন কিফহাউস বািড়টা

ঠনঠিনয়া, কেলজ ট কঁ ািপেয় যায় আজও াম গািড়টা পাে গেলও রবী স ীত পা

ােব না গীতিবতান

সের যােবনা হাওড়াি েজর খঁ র ান

লাল পের শািড় করেব মা দূগার আরাধনা শষ হয়না এখােনও কলকাতার ব না

ছাটেবলা থেকই মেনর ক না েলােক গাছােনা বা আেগাছােলা ভােব আ িরক র প িদেত ভােলাবাসত ঋিষতা। তাই আজ িনেজর দশ ছেড় এত দূের এেসও ছাট বড় অনুভিত, অেনক ভােলালাগার কথা গদ বা পদ র প নয়

Portraits of Munich by Sanjukta Sen Sanjukta Sen (born 1995, Mumbai), has enjoyed dabbling in art throughout her childhood. She started sketching seriously while she was studying Politics at University of Cambridge. She developed and fine tuned her skill under her mother’s guidance. She practiced whenever she found time,sitting on side walks, and sketching buildings and people around her. Besides “Urban sketching, she also does “Still Life studies”. The love for Urban Sketching has allowed her to see the world in a very different light. She has captured the essence of Singapore, Munich, Cambridge and London through her sketches. At present, she is doing her Masters in International Relations at LSE, London.

Epic War Oil on Canvas Sagarika Sen