Miscellaneous

Songs of Synecdoche and Onomatopoeia

Hothon pe sachai rahti hai April 28, 2023

The CBSE syllabus for its Board examinations in English includes a topic ‘Poetic Devices’ or ‘Figures of Speech’. The common ones like simile, metaphor, irony, hyperbole  and oxymoron have entered our everyday vocabulary. But two sound very profound and scholarly: Synecdoche and Onomatopoeia. I start with a brief introduction before I come to the songs.

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Ballads of Love: Agony

Bhoolnewaale yaad na aa April 7, 2023

Guest article by DP Rangan (DP Rangan had written on the ecstasy side of love when the stars shine bright, sky is bluer than ever, flowers are in bloom, and the world smiles tenderly. But joy and sorrow are the two sides of the same coin – खुशी के साथ दुनिया में ह्ज़ारों ग़म भी […]

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Ballads of Love: Ecstasy

Dil mein chhupa ke pyar ka March 18, 2023

Guest article by DP Rangan (We celebrated Holi sometime back. This is the season of romance and love, when the flowers bloom, there is music in the stream of rivulets and rustling of leaves, and the hearts of even old people are aflutter with desire. There is a folk proverb to describe this: ‘फागुन में […]

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Kleptomania in Bollywood

Kleptomania March 8, 2023

Wishing the readers and their families a very Happy Holi and International Women’s Day We are all aware of the drug problem in Bollywood, thanks to the media which went into frenzy at some NCB raids at rave parties and the homes of some celebrities. There was a lot of moralising about the decadent lifestyle […]

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‘Parent’-‘Adult’-‘Child’ in songs

Thumbnail image for ‘Parent’-‘Adult’-‘Child’ in songs January 1, 2023

Wishing the readers and their families a very Happy New Year. You might recall some songs picturised on Harindranath Chattopadhyay, who always looked over 80, or on the patriarch of three generations Prithviraj Kapoor, and several such songs on an ever-old Om Prakash or David. Coming to the next generation, most songs were picturised on […]

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Thinkers’ songs

The Thinker November 30, 2022

(Note: I understand some SOY regulars are not getting email notification of new posts. You are all requested to register your email in the box at the bottom of the post. You would get a mail for confirmation from “follow.it“. This is not a spam. You would have to simply confirm, and you would start […]

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Romancing other miscellaneous balmas

Saat Saheliyan November 20, 2022

(Note: I understand some SOY regulars are not getting email notification of new posts. You are all requested to register your email in the box at the bottom of the post. You would get a mail for confirmation from “follow.it“. This is not a spam. You would have to simply confirm, and you would start […]

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हे भगवान्‌ !

O duniya ke rakhwale October 9, 2022

Gods have been an important part of our lives and, therefore, our films. We do not set off on a journey without checking whether it was an auspicious moment or not. There is a Rahukaalam when everything comes to a standstill: No weddings, no new investment or purchase of car or home appliances, no taking […]

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Songs of Sarcasm

Ek chatur naar August 13, 2022

If the world only comprised narcissists at one extreme, and the most polite and courteous who profusely praise others at the other end, it would be a very boring place. Things are never black and white. There are various shades of grey in life. In our interactions we often cannot resist the temptation of putting-down […]

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In praise of a woman’s beauty

Chaudahvin ka chaand ho June 29, 2022

A keen reader S. Joseph often suggests some themes to write on. He once wrote to me that there were many songs of a man praising the beauty of a woman, and also, somewhat less, of a woman praising a man, and it might be a nice theme for the blog. I felt diffident precisely […]

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