It wasn’t a strong wind blowing around 10.30 on Sunday night; it was the people of West Bengal breathing a sigh of relief. The meeting at Raj Bhavan had just ended, the main players had met the press, and the governor, after accomplishing the seemingly impossible task of making Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Mamata Banerjee talk to each other, had laid out the terms of the agreement. As economists and politicians began debating the implications of the word “maximum” in the agreement, the camera shifted its gaze to the dharna mancha in Singur. And those who had chosen not to fall asleep before finding out if all was well with Singur were treated to the most surreal moment of the fortnight-long crisis.

The mood was festive, and a song filled the air. Madan Mitra was singing the Rabindrasangeet, Ektuku chhnowa lage, ektuku katha shuni, on stage. Those who know a little of Bengal politics know that Madan Mitra is a force to reckon with in the state, particularly in its capital, where he heads a major cab-drivers’ union and practises a brand of politics that begins with the assumption that gentlemen are an extinct race.

Mitra’s last feat was the driving out of a team of IT professionals from Calcutta seeking an audience with Didi in Singur. The linguistic methods and martial arts applied to ensure the success of the operation have already been recognized as his party’s contribution to the art of clinching a political debate.

Under the circumstances, one would think that Tagore’s song of desire and fantasizing would be as unappetizing to the man as a dinner of filet mignon, fois gras and crème brûlée might be to his leader, Mamata Banerjee.

But clearly, it isn’t. A friend who has spent the last few days in Singur and, consequently, rubbed shoulders with Mitra quite a bit, informs us that the Progressive Taximan has quite a repertory of Rabindrasangeet at his command. And he can summon one for any occasion that you can think of.

After Sunday, you would have to believe this. Especially if you think of the song Mitra had chosen. The song talks about a lover creating a fantasy world out of a little touch here and a little word there. Though every Bengali worth his salt is familiar with this song, having heard it in the unforgettable voice of Kishore Kumar over the loudspeaker at Puja pandals, who would have thought of this song at that ‘is-it-near-or-is-it-far’ moment of the Singur crisis?

Mamata Banerjee had just wrapped up her discussions with the chief minister and was on her way to Singur, and the promise of a solution had started trickling in at the dharna. What song could express the feelings of Singur in general and TMC leaders in particular better than Ektuku chhnowa laage? The unwilling farmers were staring at a real possibility of getting back their land, and a lot of it within the project area too. Surely, the bard, faced with such a happy prospect, would have written, “Jetuku kachhete ashe khoniker phanke phanke/ Chokito moner kone swaponer chhobi aanke (the little that comes close between moment and moment/ startles the mind into the lineaments of a dream)”?

As for jetuku jay re doore, bhabna kanpay shure (whatever goes afar/ makes my thoughts tremble with its music), that must have been the poet speaking about the future of Trinamul if the Tatas were indeed to move out of Singur. We told you that Tagore had seen it coming.

Mamata Banerjee’s paintings may be bad and her poetry worse, but the next time you accuse Trinamul of lacking in culture, think again.