Nandigram: Joy Goswami

Poet Joy Goswami has written two poems to symbolise people's outrage and protest against the Nandigram massacre. I am reproducing them below, in Bangla, together with my attempted translation.

Tumi aar tomaar cadre

1.

daley daley motor bike-ey
dhukey podey, kaara dhukey podey
bhorbela kaara dhukey podey

jaana jaay na - kintu taar-i porey
ey-gramey o-gramey, ghorey ghorey

abaadhey krishakrokto jhorey
jagroto krishokrokto jhorey

2.

ostro proyoger odhikaari
tumi aar tomaar cadre

aamraa shudhu khun hotey paari
mukh bujey khun hotey paari

ey-i aamaader odhikaar
ey-i ekmaatro odhikaar

You and your cadre

1.

They enter in droves on motorbikes
Who enters?
Who enters at dawn?

Its not possible to know -
but just after that
in this village and that village,
in home after home

Peasantblood flows without letup
Awakened peasantblood flows

2.

You and your cadre
have the right to use arms

We can only be murdered
Remain silent and get murdered

That's our right
That's our singular right

Shashok-er proti

aapni jaa bolben aami thik
taa-i korbo, taa-i khaabo, taa-i porbo, taa-i gayey mekhey
bedaatey berobo.
aamaar nijer jomi chhedey diye choley jaabo kothati na-boley

bolben, golaay dori diyey jhuley thako shaararaat. taa-i thakbo. pordin jokhon
bolben eybaar nemey esho
tokhon kintu lok laagbey aamaakey naamaatey
eka-eka naamtey paarbo na

otuku paarini boley oporadh neben na jaeno

For the oppressor

Whatever you say, I shall do exactly
that, I'll eat exactly that, wear exactly that, apply exactly that on my body
And leave to go out.
I'll abandon my own land and go away without so much as a word.

Tell me, put a rope around your neck and hang all night. I'll stay like that.
But the next day
when you say, now come down
You'll need people to bring me down
I won't be able to come down by myself

Don't take offence that I couldn't do that bit