Shon Alley's Holi Contest 2017 Results

On the occasion of Holi, we spread the canvas out to our poets, to paint it with the best coloured musings.
And, as expected the participants threw a variety in terms of one-liners using vivid colours to chalk out their imaginations.
Each entry spilled out a different story.
It was a spectacular experience to witness such high voltage participation.
Cheers & congratulations to each creative feather who participated!!!
This time, each entry was so superlative that I seriously couldn't pick a particular bunch of entries as my favourites.
In fact, this time every participating one-liners were unique in its own way.
But as the rules says, we have to declare the WINNERS...

So, here they are:

CONGRATULATIONS to all the winners.

And kudos to the high-spirited participants!

This contest indeed left all of us " Mannmugdha"

The Life Story of a Woman

When an infant girl is born in the house of a couple,
The joy is in excess and the happiness is doubled.
The mother is relieved and the father can’t believe,
And happiness runs like a wind in the house.
From the family of the girl’s to that of the boy’s,
Everyone wants to laugh and rejoice.
The infant grows up to be a beautiful girl,
She’s cute and quiet and her hair has curls.
A hope for her father and a support for her mother,
She’s a simple school going teenager.
Like the corn which grows and ripens,
The girl grows and becomes a youngster.
The time has come when she has to leave and go,
Along with her groom and his family’s row.
She sets in the house soon after her arrival,
Within a year she becomes a doting mother.
Having in her lap, a beautiful child,
She celebrates her first marriage anniversary so nice.
Seeing the child grow is his mother’s delight,
He is the twilight of his mother’s eyes.
Passes his childhood in the lap of his mother,
He is now a little grown youngster.
From a teenager to a dashing youth,
The boy grows in the shade of her kindness.
Along with him, comes in a maid,
And within a year there’s another nascent in her shade.
From a mummy to a granny,
Her time has been spent.
While playing with her grandchildren,
Her time has to end.
She dies leaving her family in her well days,
She goes to heaven married,
And her soul to heaven is thus carried.
Going to heaven with wrinkles and no curls,
Thus ends the life of a cute infant girl.
But today what have we done to women at large?
Torturing them and leaving them behind too far.
Some pairs kill their unborn child,
Or leave their off-springs abandoned behind,
Because a little infant girl is there,
Which is born to them as a child.
The situation is going from bad to worse,
And the day is not far,
When in this world of too many men,
We shall be having,
“A land without women”.



A Guest post by Rishav Raina

Women's Day Micro-poetry Contest Results

This Women's Day, Poetry Shots with Shon was hosted online with a picture prompt for the poets to weave a 5-lines micro-poetry. The contest witnessed some really interesting imaginative entries.
Each participant had a different story to tell via their poetries, giving me a tough time to decide one winner amongst the splendid participants.
So, kudos to each poet who participated in this contest.

                               The Winner of the contest is

The winning poem is here!


Geethanjali Dilip

The stone seats have waited long,
To melt in her sultry countenance,
 This lady in red, a walking song,
 A parasol shrouding feigned innocence,
 That she holds daintily lest she melt under man-made sunlight.

                 My Favourites amongst the entries:

Debolina  Coomar

A lady in red stole my heart,
 But, she left tearing me apart.
 The next time I met, I was more cautious,
 But, I fell for those dreamy eyes again,
 This time her betrayal was no longer pain.




Kriti Singh

I was craving for the rain,
 And here it's raining heavily,
 I love the feeling when I touched the raindrops,
 Falling in love with rain is not cogency,it's ecstasy,
 A gorgeous and admirable moment of alluring madness.




Harsh Vardhan Samrat

Screened on the red canvas of this umbrella
 Past moments of ecstasy and elation
 Seeing this phenomenal cinema of our love
 Even the lying stones burst into emotions
 But why don't you?




Niwant Salunke

Fallen for the beauty of the beautiful,
 I just forgot about the lion sitting dreadful;
 The black lining on your skirt complements the car,
 The blood red beauty splendid the aura,
 The thing which is missing is a small red fedora




Shama T. Bukhari

From behind closed windows , two old bereaved eyes peep .
 She sees a mermaid in red ,waiting with an umbrella to shield .
 She with a sigh thought of someone, who sailed out of Hudson harbour never to return.
 The Sphinx he pointed is our witness of love , but he never returned .
 She pity the girl who sits and wait daily for someone.




Niveditha Nivi

Polko dots and pointed heels,
 Adorning her pretty skin,
 With Red umbrella spread wide,
 And gracious smile playing on,
 She waited for her handsome's ride.




Yana

Redly painted phenomena is me
 with spark on my hands incessantly
My clinquant eyes are dripping for your presence
Nosing your hands for freedom of incense dear
I am red!
Women of today with sheer




Geeta C Yadav

She is a phantom of delight,
 Dressed in red, she knows her might,
 She sits all by herself with a smile,
 Ready to walk down the aisle,
 With Maria; her natural choice.




Fatima Afshan

I wait for you with a spark in my eyes
 holding a red umbrella against the blue sky
 my red dress dazzles the passers by
 But my glittering eyes don't feel shy
 As I fly with you in an imaginary sky.




Tanushree Das

I smelled Your charisma as a child,
 I was seduced by Your frequent accidentally encountered smelling,
 I was longing for starting to be using You,
 I suddenly started submerging into My fantasies when I spelled your name clearly at yesterday,
 And I magnetically tasted You for making You stay with Me for My cravings,Lipstick!




Raminder Kaur Luthra

Nature is my first love
 Which teaches me how To love
 Things I am pondering
 Will startle every human being
 Love rain,love thou nature ,love you my love.




Avinash Kumar Verma

She sits by the fountain,
 Drenched in the red and bold.
 Sunrays peeping through the divine windows,
 Upon this beauty with red umbrella,
 And a smile defining her confidence.




Shon Alley

While passing by the 21st lane,
 I saw a Lion in black
 A lioness drenched in red
 Stilettoes defining her sharpness of sunlight
 Umbrella adding protection instead!




Monika Lambekar

Missing my groom
 Sitting here in a red in this room
 Wishing him to come running to me
 With a bunch or a single red rose
 Proposing me showering his love

Kaun ho tum ...

 Tere maasum sawaalon ka

Ek alhad sa jawaab, mere andaaz mein...

In conversation with Subhrajyoti Parida...

Subhrajyoti Parida, Author of the book of poems, "Bouquet-of emotions, feelings and thoughts" is a graduate in Mechanical Engg. from Indira Gandhi Institute of Technology, Odisha and holds a Post Graduate degree in Industrial Engg. from National Institute of Industrial Engg. (NITIE), Mumbai, specializing in Supply Chain & Operations Management and is an APICS Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP).

Currently, he is employed in Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and residing in Bangalore. He hails from the temple city of Bhubaneswar, Odisha.When not managing supply chain, he loves spending time in poetry, photography, traveling, and of course, spending quality time with his sweet wife and his family.

1.What according to you makes a true poet?
Ans: A true poet, in my opinion, is one whose only objective is to touch the heart, mind and soul of the readers in general, without concentrating on showing-off his or her vocabulary or literary prowess.


2.Every pen has an inspiration behind it. What is it for you?
Ans: In the beginning, writing poetry was a mere pastime, the objective being to keep those poems safe and sound in my laptop or to publish a few on my personal blogs. My poetry has been always inspired from a plethora of themes such as nature, earth, human ambition, war, peace etc. But of late, subsequent to my Mother’s sad demise due to cancer, the primary source of my inspiration has been my late Mother and the mothers in general, in all forms.


3. What do you think about the newly emerged genre "Micro-poetry"
Ans: I think it is a brilliant idea; in fact, a revolutionary one because Micro-poetry, I personally believe, requires great deal of creativity and literary skill in packing countless ideas and emotions within a couple of lines.


4.Tell us about your book.
Ans: ‘Bouquet-of emotions, feelings and thoughts..’ is my debut book which is basically an anthology of poems based on a plethora of themes such as mother, motherhood, goddess, love, war, peace, ambition, nature, earth, soldier, freedom etc. besides trying to draw attention of the society toward one of the most disgraceful stigmas in our society i.e, female foeticide.
I have dedicated this book to my late Mother and is available online both in paperback (http://www.amazon.in/dp/9385783238/)

Kindle version is available at
(https://www.amazon.in/dp/B06WRV55HM)

5. Share a memorable moment that happened to you post Bouquet - of feelings, emotions and thoughts.
Ans: One would like to share one memorable experience of mine which is pertaining to one my readers. She, after completing my book, shared with me her experience that she, who stays in a hostel away from family, literally started weeping recollecting her mother and home. Initially I felt bad for making a girl cry but later I realized, my poems could strike the right chord among some readers, making them love, respect and be more affectionate on their mother and parents in general.

*Rapid-fire with Shon Alley*

1. Currently reading: 1962 THE WAR THAT WASN’T by Shiv Kunal Verma

2. Life apart from writing: My dear family, 9 to 5 job, photography and travelling.

3. Family means : Dad, Wife, Sister and dear late Mother

4. Genres that attract you: Mythology and Mythological based fiction, War

5. Upcoming book/ projects: An untitled work based on my Mother’s fight against cancer and her sadful demise eventually. It has also poetry part which has poems dedicated to my Mother and all the mothers in general in all forms.

*Fictionia Quiz*

1. Three most favourite poets:
Ms. Swapna Behera , Mr. Sudipto Behera and Mr. Darshan Panda

2. Three frequently used words:
 Heart, mind and soul

3. All-time favourite book: Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson – this has been my favorite book since childhood days

* Spill out the beans of your success to the aspiring poets & writers.

It may sound stereotype but it is true: perseverance, hard work and self-belief are the ingredients to success irrespective of what field you are in and the same holds good for poets and writers too.

* Your take on Fictionia and this interview.

I love following the posts with #Fictionia by Shon Alley since they are quite intruguing, inquisitive and witty. Keep it up 
Interview is quite an interesting one and never gave a scope to the writer to manufacture the answers as per their interest. I really enjoyed it !

Thanks for this wonderful conversation Subhrajyoti Parida & best wishes for your future endeavours.

A Women's March

  A seed was sown in the womb of the patriarchal Mother earth, aiming for 'HER' first cry, had dreamt a life till eternity, but those eyes of innocence failed to read the gravity in the veracity of situation emerged in the lethargic, narrow-minded society, and those eyes never witnessed their first blink... They were under an impression of weird, vague mentality...And were shut forever...
        The cry once heard was mourn to make her listen to crumple voices of death.
         But who cares ........For HER grave....
    Sssshhhhh! Don't you see, she was sleeping...Let her sleep forever. Who cares, she was forced to sleep forever.
      Miles away from the reality,soon might turn to fact...“ When those oceans will boil in the calmness of moon, when those bright mornings will turn to gloomy nights, when all books shall be read open, when satan will enervate the glory of the Lords,
When that pen will refrain to ink the paper, once those love birds will be each other's malicious counterparts, when those souls of MAN should be  burnt and burried alive.....!” At that moment, she'll rested in peace with an unanswered question torturing her soul..“Why Me?"
         “Before that only tear had dropped down,
          Before my first breath made a sighing sound,
          Before I could cross the labyrinth of that earth,
          Those evils cuts my times of mirth...
          The mud junked in those young nails,
          That pain I suffered, got relentless in scales,
          To be a slave, I had a birth for thee,
          That slaughtered body still screams “Why Me?"
     She never loose hope, she is the creator of every life that evolves, A women, A girl, A spine of this so called “MALE” world, standing tall above the men, it's the WOMEN POWER, THAT NEVER DIES, THAT NEVER CRIES....
       A HAPPY WOMEN'S MARCH!

By Darshan Oza