सागराने

सागराने नाविका मनी संकट मोठे पेरले,
वादळाने होडीस एका दशदिशांनी घेरले
शीड तुटले, खीळ तुटले, कथा काय या वल्ह्याची,
नाविकास ही फिकीर नव्हती, पुढे राहिल्या पल्ल्याची...

नशीब नव्हते पाठीशी, नव्हता अनुभव गाठीशी
उभा ठाकला एकटाच, युद्ध होते वादळाच्या वय वर्षे साठीशी
स्वबळी विश्वास मोठा, त्यास तोड कर्तुत्वही
रौद्र वादळ शांत झाहले, पागळले शत्रुत्वही.

एकवटला धीर हा, कोठूनी येतो त्या क्षणी,
शत बाहूंचे बळ येते, जव मातृत्व तरळते मनी.

The Sea bore an array of perils
A mighty storm ambushed the lone sailor
The sail snapped, the nails unhooked
The sailor persisted, unfazed by what lay ahead
Luckless, the knots of skill turned loose
He stood there alone, the storm slapped its noose
A life lived in benevolence will not let faith wither
He overcame fear and the storm lulled into slither
Courage of the universe, regathers in a single moment
A hundred arm’s strength regains, as the memory of mother returns

--- Ravindra Ghanshyam Deshpande
-किल्ला (मराठी चित्रपट)

Stage

We didn’t go to the stage,
nor were we called.
With a wave of the hand
we were shown our place.
There we sat
and were congratulated,
and “they”, standing on the stage,
kept on telling us of our sorrows.
Our sorrows remained ours,
they never became theirs.
When we whispered out doubts
they perked their ears to listen,
and sighing,
tweaking our ears,
told us to shut up,
apologize; or else...

--Waharu Sonavane; translated by Bharat Patankar, Gail Omvedt, and Suhas Paranjape