‘Tum samjho toh mujhe bhi samjhana‘ – this was the usual reaction of people whenever Rosesh Sarabhai from the epic Sarabhai v/s Sarabhai recited one of his gems. Understandably enough, not everyone can get the depth of these Rosesh Sarabhai poems, especially since our country doesn’t have a sense of humour.
I love him and ALL of his poems, which is why I thought it will be a great idea to compile a list of the best 10 that the world deserves remember till eternity!
1. When He Proved He REALLY Knows How To Throw A Party
Indu Sarabhai agar paapad hote…
Toh hum likhte pichle pachpan saal se mashoor – swadisht, kurkure, sakene mein aasan.
Lekin wo to papad…
Nahi! Woh toh hai insaan!
Aayega unki 55th birthday party mein mazza…
Jahan dinner hoga Italian…
Not poori, pulao aur do mishtan farsaan,,,
If this doesn’t inspire your next birthday party invite, I am not coming to your party!
2. When This Fishy Mystery Was Too Much To Take
Sone jaisa rang hai tera, aakhe jaise moti,
laash jaisi dikhti hai jab khuli aankh se soti
machli bu bu bu bu bu bu bu bu kissi de do choti choti…
I wish Maya hadn’t asked him to shut up at this point. Sigh.
3. When He Gave Us The Official Mother’s Day Poem
Momma ka purse, jaise hospital ki pyaari koi nurse
Purse mein rakha tissue paper karta hai paseene ka ilaaj
Aur lipstick ho jaise, bhooke hotho ka anaj
Momma ke purse ka hai makhmali sa sparsh
Momma ka purse, momma ka purse
And again…
4. When He Rocked Momma’s Hypothetical Shraddhanjali
Meri moma Maya Sarabhai, yaani ishwar ki di hui badhaai
Ishwar ki samjhaai hui sachaai, ki duniya maaya se hi bani banaai
Sab kuch hai maaya, yeh sofa yeh kaaya
Ishwar ne table-cloth bhi hai maaya se banaaya
Rista bhi maaya, raasta bhi maaya, lunch dinner aur breakfast bhi maaya
Maya to sophistication ka pratik hai, thodi contemporary thodi antique hai
Maya to hai mamta ka chhaya, sara pyaar aata always via maaya
Maaya hai jeevan ki preyasi, Maya hai jaise dining table ki kursi
Maaya hi dudh, Maya hi lassi, phir kaise kahu ki maaya chal basi?
Maya was speechless after this recitation and so are you, I am sure! FYI, Rosesh didn’t even write this poem down. He just made it up in his head in like 5 minutes. #LikeABoss
5. When He Added His Magic To An Otherwise Boring Anniversary Wish
Ek common man ko mili hai pari, jaise cheeku ke saath ho raspberry
Aage aage momma aur peechay peechay daddy, jaise ho Tom and Jerry
Momma hai sweet srikhand and papa ghee wali poori
Mauka hai khushi ka aaj, momma aur daddy ki anniversary!
*Slow clap*
6. When He Made Popat Kaka Proud
Popat kaka ki aatma ka popat, udd gaya udd gaya udd gaya re
Shristi ke sajjan haatho se popat, judd gaya judd gaya judd gaya re
Best. Shradhanjali. Ever
7. When He Completely Understood Existentialism
Tum samjho to mujhe bhi samjhana, kyu mera jeevan hai khokla
Pagal baawra sa anjaana… aise baasi khaman dhokla
#TheStruggleIsReal
8. When He Came Up With His Gastronomic Genius
Uff ye kabs, uff acidity, uff ye roz jaana ek ghanta bathroom
Wohi blue tiles ke beech white white toilet
Asmaan ke beech jaise baadal maasoom
Thinking of getting blue tiles already?
9. When He Made Us Look At Jelly In Brand New Light
Lakul lagul lakul lagul laal laal lagul lagul jelly
Jelly ke cabaret dancer jaise shareer mein chupi hai unkahi, unsuni paheli
Jelly – meri momma ka mann, narm, mulayam, meetha
Ppasand kare isse harr koi – Sangeeta, Rita, Nita, Anita.
Jelly gire zameen par to awaaz aaye plup plup
Baccha usme haath maare, to sunai deti hai thup thup
Jelly par kabhi fungus na lage, uska swaad kabhi bhankas na lage
Agar bachani hai hume hamari country
Toh jelly ko banana chahiye iss desh ka pradhan mantri!
#JellyForPM
10. When He Published His Poetry Book
Ek teen pair waala kutta…
Isko kabhi bhagaana nahi padta
Susu karte waqt,
Use pair uthaana nahi padta
This is just one of the 121 poems that Rosesh wrote for this book titled, Pathar Par Paani, Rosesh Ki Zubani.
I sincerely wanted the makers of the show to publish this book for real. But as you know, dreams don’t always come true.
Which is your favourite Rosesh poem?