Lucknow is love
Lent to me whole
First served on a platter
For ravenous siblings like us
Who relished every morsel
Of the Lucknowi Dum Biryani
Tossed with well cooked paneer cubes
And spongy mushroom heads;
The rice with an extraordinary soft texture
Knocked the socks off our tongues !
All the thirst to explore authentic North- Indian food
Did indeed quench this noontide
As we dined for our le petite dejeuner
At the restaurant Milan
Meeting our appetizing soulmates
For the melding of saffron in Zafrani Parattas
Dipped in lush green mint chutney
Took my brother to Elysian heights
Belly- full yet I ordered a Punjabi Lassi topped with almonds and mawas
While I was missing Jyoti, my Haryanvi friend
It was hard to part from the seats
To walk away from the air conditioned closed space
Yet we moved on with our baggage
O the streets of Hazratganj !
Is a cornucopia of exuberance
Flushed with spectacular surprises
From the resplendent display
Of Lucknowi Chikankari suits
Parrot green, lemon yellow, cherry red and charcoal black
To a varied range of chai and chaat at the busiest roads
Sharmaji ki Chai and Shukla Chaat House
Brimming with men wearied doing their daily affairs
At home and office cheer each other up sipping tea in kulhad with maakhani bun
Gharma garam samosas and cutlets tempt
Your stuffed bellies appetizing enough
To get them packed dreamily
It was another blazing hot afternoon
Yet we chose to experiment adventurous
Turning down a number of offered carts
Built miscellaneous; a hybrid of cycle and rickshaws
Autos in bright teal green
And plain mechanical blue
“Welcoming us to Lucknow!”
Like mothers and fathers would usher their expatriate kids in
One well dressed in pleasant green and the other haphazardly dressed in blue
Uninterested, passive, weakened by the summer strokes
Attracted my attention the most
As it was widely calling many
Who poured in with bags heavy
Smoothly rode like electric cars
Welcoming us again to Lucknow.
-thepenchantwand
THE TACITURN TALKS 