Zeitgeistlyrik: GORKHALAND BLUES (Satis Shroff) Early in the misty morning monsoon morning A Gorkhali meets a Bengali Below the statue of Bhanubhakta Acharya, At Darjeeling’s Chowrasta. The Bengali doesn’t like the Adi Kavi The prime poet of the Gorkhalis there. Why do you have your poet here, Why not also Tagore? The Gorkhali says,’ Tagore belongs to Shantiniketan.’ East Bengal belonged to ancient Bengal. But it turned into East Bengal overnight in 1947. You Bengalis had nothing in common with the Muslims of East Pakistan. Freedom from Pakistan let to Bangladesh. We in the hills of Darjeeling, Want freedom from Bengal. We want our own Gorkhaland. ‘But Gorkhaland lies in Bengal, ‘ says the Bengali. What do you have in common with us Gorkhalis? The Bengali replies: ‘We have the same religion.’ Ah, but nothing else. You eat fish, we eat dal-bhat-shikar. We fought for our Nepali language. It has been recognised as one of the language
