November 18, 2011
'Vikhroli' is a place which I hope you've come across
If you haven't I shall sympathise for I bemoan your loss
Get your Atlas, do a Google for it shouldn't take you long
Just a glimpse of my Vikhroli makes me want to burst in song
Now I can fabricate a story and make your eyes go moist
With childhood friends all joining in, their memories also voiced
But I promise not to spin a tale and only truth I'll tell
For "Satya Meva Jayathe" is something I've learnt well
You can be my Sancho Panza while I take you down the lane
Where memories overwhelm me with a numb and aching pain
Now it's easy to exaggerate when you think about the past
And reminisce about those days which have gone by so fast
Just the thought, it makes me happy and my heart it starts to flip
While I get into a time machine to take this awesome trip
I remember, I remember - My heart it seems to say
While I jog around the treasures of a lovely yesterday
With Endorphins in my blood stream and thoughts all flowing wild
My hormones seem to rush in like an adolescent child
The images start rolling and I say "Action Replay"
While I see my Alma Mater and the friends of my heyday
Udayachal was so special, a school ex- students miss
Those golden days of childhood were filled with so much bliss
While we chat for hours on Face book and talk about our school
We're holding hands around the world like "Ek daali ke phool"
"Jitna pyaara, utna pyaara”, I believe is true
For "Mata ka Aanchal” will always stay with you
As for our lovely teachers who put up with our pranks
We remember them with gratitude and many many thanks
A tribute I must pay now before I tell you more
To the Godrej Family whom I'm sure we all adore
They've set a great example with all that they have done
With honour and humility, our fragile hearts they've won
So dignified and simple despite their name and fame
They shook hands with the watchman and even knew his name
They made each child feel wanted and taught us to respect
Every other person, despite their creed or sect
For in Phirojshanagar, Where folks from East met West
We had the best of both worlds and knew that we were blest
In this mosaic of cultures, "where sabka sur mile"
We grew from kids to teenagers, our best days I could say
If I may steal a line from Wordworth, when on my couch I lie
Nostalgia seems to grip me flashing on that inward eye
I see a place like Heaven, it has to be Godzone
For seeds of peace and harmony in this playground were sown
I don't see El Dorado where streets are paved with gold
But a place where folks were made in a very different mould
Their Mother tongues were different but their language was just one
And they spoke of love and unity and ill will there was none
They practised different faiths but they never thought it wrong
To sing and pray together while they all just got along
While some would say their "Aamori" and others their "Namaaz"
They all just merged together and I heard just one "Aavaaz"
As kids we loved each festival and rejoiced in each of them
For tolerance was what we learnt, where noble feelings stem
We celebrated Onam and enjoyed our Garba Raas
And also went to Temples not forgetting Daily Mass
The Bible, Geeta, Koran - all teach and preach the same
That Greed and Pride are sinful and are vices we should tame
Eid was just so special and Biryani was just great
As for "Patrani Machi” it makes me salivate
I loved Mum's Kori Roti but also loved her saag
Each cuisine blending smoothly like a mellifluous raag
Our neighbour played his Manna Dey while Dad heard Nat King Cole
The fusion of these harmonies was music to the soul
No matter where we bat and no matter where we bowl
The games we played in childhood are still tonic to the soul
With a childhood filled with riches, I say this with "vishvaas"
That "Vikhroli days" will stay with me until my "antim saas."
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