Room Number 704

This is a rendition of Tapta's Manipuri song, 704 Room. Check the lyrics on Tapta Fan Club's blog.

I was walkin’ past the cinema,

When a poster caught my eye,

One of those obscene type flicks,

A double feature, two-a-day high.

I paused a while, should I go in?

But then I checked—was cash still thin?

And just then, I saw her face

That girl from room seven-oh-four.

My breath got caught, my heart near stopped,

It shook me to my very core.

I reached for kwa, lit up a smoke;

“Hey babe,” I said, “How’ve you been?

All good with you? Here, have a kwa.”

She smiled—so soft, so shy, so clean.

“Yeah,” she said, “Your girl’s been fine.

Life’s been smooth, I’ve been doin’ just fine.”

Two hearts aligned that flicker strong

There was somethin’ there, all along.

But see this man, all broke and worn,

With empty pockets, pride all torn.

There was a look we both had shared,

A silent spark—but time’s unfair.

The moment passed, the time’s not right

Too many wrongs, too long the night.

She said, “It’s late, don’t walk alone.

Aren’t you goin’ home, love, on your own?

Have you forgotten me? It’s been so long.”

The air was heavy, the feeling strong.

There was a look between our eyes,

But time had drawn its cruel lines.

The hours, the years, had not been kind,

Just a broken man, with coins to find.

Embarrassed, I stepped ahead

No words, no goodbye, no backward tread.

It was wrong, all wrong, a twisted rhyme,

An unsolved sum, a skipped-out time.

But still I walk, and still I hear,

Her voice behind me, soft and near:

“Are you leaving, babe,

Have you really forgotten me?

You must have mistaken me.”

And still it echoes; quiet, low,

In every street I ever go.

   TRANSLATION NOTE   

~ Tapta is a legendary singer, based in Manipur. He has single-handedly changed the entire landscape of Manipuri modern music with his inimitable singing style, songs of social relevance and political incorrectness. He is perhaps the only singer in this part of the world to record concept albums and more than a couple of times he has done it.

~ Apparently, in the song, the crooner's ex-partner is a prostitute, but he only hints it. This kind of theme's another Tapta's specialty.

The fractured Manipuri society is one of a dilemma. We are conservative but we love sex—perhaps because it is so good! We are all protesters of death but will never mind killing in the name of the land, the power and the money. Assholes. It is in this backdrop, this song with a stomping 4/4 beat is so good. We are too timid to talk about indecency and shits because we are civilised but Tapta sings to fuck with all the sensibilities.

~Kwa is a tobacco stuff prepared with betel leaves and areca nuts, flavored with slaked lime. It is commonly known in the Indian subcontinent as paan. Sometimes it is made not with the tobaccos, but with mukhwas and various sweeteners.

• Check the Tapta Fan Club Blog
• All his song titles can be condensed into haiku. Read the Bombula Haiku.

Haiku # 704 Room

As I wait for her
I see there is no condom
I see a balloon!