I love the millennium park in Chicago; more because of Anish Kapoor and his mind blowing creation ‘Cloud Gate’ that has attracted millions of visitors like me to the city. In fact, when inside the park, one should not look at the watch…ever! It’s a total fun place with variety of entertainment for different kind of people; musical concerts, exhibitions, fun time festivals for kids, architecture, opera or even dance festivals…you name it and its there.

My favorite color is green and so is Nature’s and I happily shared this similarity with her during our trip to the famous Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, United States.

In Greek the word ‘nautilus’ means sailor but here I am talking about a fine place to stay on the shores of Atlantic Ocean; in Daytona Beach, Florida.

During the first week of our stay in Rotorua, New Zealand, we went around exploring natural geysers, crater lakes, multi-colored sulphur springs, bubbling mud pools and even experienced the Maori (Tribal) culture and traditions. We even did our share of watching New Zealand’s national bird, Kiwi and the living pre-historic fossil, the Tuatara, the World’s slowest growing and the longest living reptile.  Then it was time to take a look at the other treasures that the city had to offer. 

You have read wonderful children's poems and short stories in Bengali by Tapas Kiran Roy here at WBRi Online Bengali Magazine, including ভুতের বিয়ের বাসর, গ্রামের নাম অকালপোষ, কাল্টু, আমার কুকুর, সন্তান, মাকড়সা ও মাছি, অচিন পাখী and more. We present here a biography of the poet and creative writer in unicode Bangla font.

You can send your stories, poems and creative writing for publication in our online magazine section by e-mail to submissions@washingtonbanglaradio.com.

---

কবি ও লেখকের জীবনী

তাপসকিরণ রায়
পিতার নাম : স্বর্গীয় শৈলেশ চন্দ্র রায়

জন্ম স্থান: ঢাকা , বাংলা দেশ

বাংলা বিভাজনের ফল স্বরূপ জন্মভূমি বাংলাদেশকে ফেলে  ১৯৫১সালে বাবা মার হাত ধরে পশ্চিম বাংলার বর্ধমান শহরে এসে উঠলেন।প্রাথমিক ও মাধ্যমিকস্তরের পড়াশোনা সমাপ্ত করে  ১৯৬৬-র অক্টোবর মাসে পৌঁছালেন  দন্ডকারন্য প্রজেক্টে। আর্থিক অসঙ্গতির জন্য তাঁকে প্রাথমিক শিক্ষকের কাজ নিতে হয়।পরে পদোন্নতি হয় হাই স্কুলে।ইতিমধ্যে তিনি কলকাতা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় থেকে ব.এ.পাশ কেন।রায়পুর রবিশঙ্কর বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় থেকে অর্থশাস্ত্রে এম.এ.করেন,বি.এড. ডিগ্রী পান ভোপাল  বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় থেকে ...

The Bengali short story Achin Pakhi by Tapas Kiran Roy is presented in Unicode Bangla font. Roy is writing for a couple of years now and he has been published across various online Bengali magazines including Ichchamati, Joydhak, Diala Kochikancha, Banglalive, Tilottama Bangla, Madhukari, Parabaas and our own WBRi Online Bengali Magazine. The author can be reached at tkray1950 [at] gmail [dot] com.

Read all about Tapas Kiran Roy in a short biography of the author.

You can send your stories, poems and creative writing for publication in our online magazine section by e-mail to submissions@washingtonbanglaradio.com.

---

অচিন পাখী

তাপস কিরণ রায়

ক্লাসের মঞ্জু বলে মেয়েটিকে আমার খুব ভালো লাগতো।তখন বয়স আমার কত,দশ এগার বছর হবে।মঞ্জুর বয়স হবে নয় কিম্বা দশ।বয়স হিসাবে কিই বা বুঝতাম!তবু ভালো লাগা,মন্দ লাগার ধারণা তো থাকতই।

রানাঘাট প্রাথমিক বিদ্যালয়ে পড়তাম--স্কুলের নাম ছিলো,পাল চৌধরী প্রাথমিক বিদ্যালয়।স্থানীয় জমিদার তারা পালচৌধরীর পরনো বাড়ির দোতলায় বসতো স্কুল।

The Bengali poem "Makorsha O Machi" (The Spider and the Fly) by Tapas Kiran Roy is presented in Unicode Bangla font. Roy is writing for a couple of years now and he has been published across various online Bengali magazines including Ichchamati, Joydhak, Diala Kochikancha, Banglalive, Tilottama Bangla, Madhukari, Parabaas and our own WBRi Online Bengali Magazine. The author can be reached at tkray1950 [at] gmail [dot] com.

Read all about Tapas Kiran Roy in a short biography of the author.

You can send your stories, poems and creative writing for publication in our online magazine section by e-mail to submissions@washingtonbanglaradio.com.

---

মাকড়সা ও মাছি

তাপস কিরণ রায়

মাকড়সাতে কয়,
করিস না কো ভয়,
মাছি,আমায়ভরসা কর
ছাড় সব ভয় ডর ...

Dr. G C Bhattacharya is a teacher at BHU, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India and has been writing for over 15 years. His writings have been published in Ichchhamoti, Joydhak, Diyala, A-Padartha and other Bengali magazines. Besides Bengali, he writes in Hindi and English (UK short fiction) too. His published books includes Badal Kotha in Hindi. Dr. Bhattacharya can be reached at dbhattacharya9 [at] gmail [dot] com.

This is the second story in the Dr. Bhattacharya's detective mystery series featuring young sleuth Badal who you was introduced to you in বাদলের প্রথম অন্বেষণ.

This story is reproduced in Unicode Bengali font for increased browser compatibility.

Submit your creative writing, story, poem, travelog etc. for publication on WBRi by e-mail to submissions@washingtonbanglaradio.com.

---

কাঞ্চনপুরের দলিল রহস্য

অধ্যাপক (ড:) জি .সি. ভট্টাচার্য, বারাণসী, উত্তর প্রদেশ

কাঞ্চন পুরের নাম হয়তো অনেকেই শোনেনি তবে সেই অখ্যাত অজগ্রামে সেবারে বেশ এক মজাদার কান্ড হয়েছিল একটা দলিল নিয়ে। আজ সেই কথাই বলছি ....

জমিদার বিলাস সিংহের প্রাসাদের লোহার সিন্দুক থেকে এই দলিলখানা এক্কেবারে উধাও হয়ে যায়। নির্ঘাৎ করে চুরি তবে খাসা চুরি, কোনো প্রমাণ নেই ..

বোঝাই যায় যে সময়ের কথা বলছি সেই সময়ে দেশ স্বাধীন ও হয়নি আর জমিদাররাও নির্মূল হয়ে যায়নি, সুতরাং তাদের রমরমা ও বেশ ছিলো ইংরেজ সরকার বাহাদুরকে প্রসন্ন করে রেখে। উপযুক্ত সম্মান উপাধি ও পেতেন সেবার বদলে।

A Qualified Wife

By Nirendra Dev

A Short Story

Editor's Note: Nirendra Narayan Dev (nirendev1 [at] gmail [dot] com), an acclaimed political journalist, is a special correspondent of The Statesman, New Delhi and author of the books Ayodhya : Battle For Peace, The Talking Guns North East India and Godhra A Journey To Mayhem. Nirendra was born and brought up in India's northeast and his father served with paramilitary force Assam Rifles. His blog is at bestofindiarestofindia.blogspot.com.

We have previously had an opportunity of talking to the author and have posted the audio recording of the interview.

His earlier short stories published on Washington Bangla Radio are The Pawns, Arms of Comfort, The Guiding Sun, Soothing Moon, Patrons of a Letter Box and Anniversary Night.

---

A professional photographer on the first wedding night spends entire time taking photographs of the bride, a computer system operator would waste time trying to find some faults and correct it and at the end sum up the story: it’s system failure. The bedtime joke made fascinating reading to Amalendu Dutta. Leaving aside the tiny joke book, he walked towards the window. It rained heavily all evening and the sky was still overcast and black rain-laden clouds drifted across the sky. He could feel the smell of mango wafted up in the air. Another summer has come; sultry summer. There is no running away from Kolkata’s summer, he wondered. “Diney machchi, ratey masha … ei niye Kolkata (Kolkata in summer time is never complete without flies in day time and mosquitoes in the night)

But he knew, some poor people would probably rejoice it more than the winter. Last winter was unexpectedly chilly killing scores of people in the city. People are born, grow up, marry and slowly die to get another birth, may be; may be not! Mere thought of the words ‘marriage’ and ‘marry’ some how has left Amalendu slightly puzzled more than disturbed. What’s this institution of marriage after all, he wondered staring outside towards the sky as if he was looking for a heavenly answer.

To Amalendu, however, the marriage essentially meant some adjustments here, some compromises there. Human life is most of the time a puppet whose strings are held in society’s mangled hands. The wedding knot is a proof of that. But still, wedding is essential part of one’s life. His bachelorhood is a proof in itself that things are not yet organized. His life is still directionless unlike most of his ‘married’ friends and colleagues – who have routine to follow; - time to move out of home, time to return. Time for their weekends, family picnics. It was not only Amalendu’s personal choice, even his parents have been insisting on him to settle for the wed lock.

Unknowingly, having thought these, he glanced at himself in the mirror. The problem was not about the need for the marriage. He has well reached that stage. The thought of marriage; and an imagination of a fair lady coming out from his bathroom in night gown would cast a magical aura around the room. The mood would turn festive.

Munising is Michigan Upper Peninsula’s best kept secret and its USP is certainly the Pictured Rocks and all other attractions that are listed under NPS’ Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. I woke up to a surprisingly warm morning on an early September day just to be awed by the magnificent sunrise on Lake Superior. Ours was a Lake facing room and the view was truly amazing. Later in the day, equipped by maps and brochures we set out for our much anticipated trip of the beautiful Lakeshore.

Torrential rain lashed our car window panes and windshield as we drove into DC. I was a bit depressed as whenever I thought of Washington DC, beautiful buildings, memorials, flags and monuments came to my mind .…not to miss out the grand Smithsonian museums and the chances looked bleak as the sky was overcast and it poured mercilessly. My prayers for a sunny next day continued and were answered as we woke up to a crisply cold morning next day. Our weekend trip to the capital city of the United States was like taking a walk through the past, present and the future of the country….a city that had loads of history to share.

As we slurped big scoops of gelato on waffle cones, we debated, should we or should we not… Finally we decided that we would throw a coin on Trevi Fountain that would ensure our return to the eternal city. Honestly, I don’t believe in these legends but as I stood in front of the Fontana di Trevi and watched hundreds of people tossing a coin into the waters, I thought may be its worth giving a try and if it doesn’t work till the last day of my life, I can tell people ‘It’s not going to work.’ 

The World will celebrate the birthday of Swami Vivekananda on January 12, 2012 and the Ramakrishna Math and Mission will begin a four-year-long celebration to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda and carry out various projects in several states to commemorate the occasion. 

The whole world is talking about Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes-A Game of Shadows and I am particularly raving about the most charming Dr.Watson (Jude Law). The film is said to be based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s ‘The Final Problem’ and after watching the film I fondly remembered my trip to Meiringen.