Staring out from the window of an unknown city, in a land that feels foreign, whispers of the past still echo. The voices, their words, the promises—they linger like ghosts in the corners of my mind. I long to answer, yet the silence is heavy, locked inside. My heart, a stone, caught in my throat. How do I share this ache, over and over, with those who have already tired of its weight? I see us—once hand in hand, promising to meet every turn in life together. Those late-night walks, the unplanned escapes, the streets we dreamed of wandering. Now that you’re gone, where do I place these dreams? A hollow wraps around me, a shadow I cannot shake. I sit by the window, watching silhouettes rise and fall—some familiar, some strangers—drifting like smoke in the memory of you. They ask how I am, tell me to find joy in what remains, that there’s more to life than this. But I live in the life we imagined—alone. I’ve gained the world, but what is it worth? It was always you—my beginning, my end. Now, I walk those unknown streets, haunted by the shadows of what once was, knowing nothing will ever be the same. The air feels thicker, every step heavier, as if the past clings to my very skin. I search the faces of strangers, hoping for a glimpse of you in the crowd, a familiar echo in the noise. As they say- loving is short, but forgetting is long. I once believed love could fill every empty space, that time would heal every wound. But now I see—some voids grow with time, and some wounds never close. The weight of absence becomes part of you, and in chasing the past, I’ve forgotten how to live in the present. ©Gargi Banerjee

Gargi Banerjee

White Mujhe nahi bachi chahat koi apna kahe mujhe, Apna kar bhi har dafaa wo mere dil se khel jaaya karte hain. Kise reh gayi hai samajh ek doosre ke jazbaton ki, Sab zarooraton ke hisaab se mohabbat sikhaaya karte hain. Ishq bas ab haftay bhar ki kahani ban kar reh gaya, Zamaane mein log ab kahan wafa nibhaya karte hain. Wo daur alag tha, wo din bhi niraale the jab hum waqayi qareeb the, Ab toh sirf khud ko behlaaya karte hain. Jo raqeeb hote the pehle, ab wo humdard ban gaye hain, Aur jo apne the, wo anjaan ki tarah guzra karte hain. Na wo baatein rahi, na kasmein waadon ka asar, Ab log sirf khaali alfaaz ka khel khela karte hain. ©Gargi Banerjee

Gargi Banerjee

White Mujhse mohabbat nahi ki ja sakti. Meri aankhon ki chamak har ek ko khoobsurat nazar aati hai, Magar is chamak ke peeche jalta sitara kisi ko manzar nahi hota. Mere jese log us mashhoor daastaan ki tarah hote hain, Jise agar kisi ne padha, toh sirf isliye ke wo mashhoor hai, Kisi ne aadhi chhodi, kisi ne ek panna palat kar rakh diya, Baqi ke alfaaz kisi ko pasand nahi paaye. Chiraagh ki tarah hote hain hum jaise log, Apni raatein roshan karne ke liye chand ka sahaara nahi lete, Bas andheron mein jalte rehte hain, Apne dard ko umeed ki lau banakar. Mere jaise log raat ban kar bhi andheron ko apna nahi paate, Bikhre aasman ki tarah hote hain, Jinhone roshni se doori bana li, Magar ab tak andheron ko poori tarah apnaya nahi. Mere jaise log saaye se ghabra kar andheron mein nahi bhaagte, Barsaat bankar intezaar karte hain, ek naye sheher ka. Khandar ki tarah hote hain hum jaise log, Jinka ek hissa kabhi ek khoobsurat mehal ka tha. Hum jaise log khamosh hote hain, shaant nahi, Samandar ke kinaaron ki tarah, Jitna gehra jaaoge, utna hi toofan, andhera, aur ujaad si duniya paoge. Mujhse mohabbat nahi ki ja sakti... ©Gargi Banerjee

Gargi Banerjee

White It's 2 a.m., and once again, I'm here, writing in the soft, muted glow of my phone screen. I'm lost in a certain genre of music, one that I'll keep unnamed as if keeping it secret might somehow shield me from the thoughts that keep me up at night. The darkness outside mirrors the void within me, a void that has grown wider and more consuming with each passing day. It's as though every moment that goes by adds another layer of something I can’t quite put into words—a kind of void that keeps expanding inside me. They say time heals all wounds, but what if time is the wound itself, slowly etching away at me, carving out pieces of who I am until there's nothing recognizable left? Yet, despite it all, we carry on, don’t we? We stand tall because that’s what’s expected of us—we put on this façade of being unbreakable, hoping that if we pretend long enough, maybe, just maybe, it’ll become our reality. ©Gargi Banerjee

Gargi Banerjee

White Ek umr guzar gayi kuch armaan sambhalte huye, Kuch khayalon ko,kuch logon ko apna banate huye, Aakhir mein haasil huwa kya? Jab bhi apni soch ko us aks mein milana chaha, Har dafa usme chehra paraya hi nazar aaya.... Aankhon mein jab khud ki tasveer talash ki, Toh door tak kisi aur ki he parchayi banti dekhi.. Har mulaqat mein bas khamoshi thi, Aur har nigaah ne uski,meri mohabbat ko nazarandaz kiya. Kuch baatein kehna mushkil hai, Isliye shayad kehkar bhi chup rahi... Haan, kuch dard chupane mein asar hai, Jab wo apni chahat ki baat karta hai, Aur main bas yeh khayal apne andar dabaye rehti hoon. Har lamha jo baatein uski zubaan se suni thi, Wo bas ek khushbu ki tarah hawa mein kho gayi. Kaash koi hota jo dil se yeh kehta, Ke tum jaisi ho, wahi ho bas meri... Magar har sapna sapna hi raha, Raste apne rang mein dhal gaye. Usne bhi odh liya rang-e-zamana, Jisko humne zamane se judaa paya tha... Aksar khud se yeh sawaal karti hoon ki aakhir meri khata kya thi? Kya yeh ki maine usse beinteha mohabbat ki? Ya phir yeh ki maine socha ke pyaar se mila zakhm Sirf pyaar se he bhar sakta hai? Ajeeb sa khalipan hai, Na aage manzil hai, na peeche koi nishaan... Ab bas itna ho k mere yeh kashmakash khatam ho, Yeh silsila jo chal raha tha woh ek anjaam tak pahuche. Yeh takleef ab khatam ho, Yeh dil thak chuka hai, Ab isse bhi thoda sukoon naseeb ho. ©Gargi Banerjee

Gargi Banerjee

White Mohabbat se yaadon k nishaan mitati rahi raat bhar, Nishaan par jalti huwi shama bujhati rahi raat bhar.. Jin aansuon ko aankhein judaa na kar saki, Syaahi bankar kagaaz par behti rahi raat bhar... Ek muddat baad ghar ko nikla tha raahi, Sadke unhi raaston par bhatkati rahi use raat bhar... Jasbaaton ki numaish aur zakhmon ka bazaar, Lafzon ki dukaan par khariddar ulajhati rahi raat bhar, Har ek chaand ko raat mukkammal nahi yaahan, Khubsurat mehfilon mein tanhaayi sajti rahi raat bhar... Aur ek zamaana tha jab yeh sher-o-shayari ki duniya, Apna liya karti thi mujhe, Khali kagaaz ko kahaani sunati rehe gayi raat bhar... ©Gargi Banerjee

Gargi Banerjee