Once, on a TV show called Heroes, I had seen a character who could see sound in the form of colorful streaks of light. Even recently, I read an article about inter sensory perception (I am not sure if that is the technical term but sounds right to me). This prompt gave a chance to explore the same in my own way. I confess, I did explore. This series will be exploring a vast array of emotions as scents we can relate to. Sounds a bit weird? It should not. You are a victim of Olfactory marketing every time you visit the Supermarket or feel like having a fried chicken next time you are near KFC. Smells funny, right?
Since one cannot describe a smell absolutely, be prepared to recall several olfactory experiences you have had in everyday life.
- Love:-Thinking about this as the first emotion cannot and should not be helped, especially by a love-struck heart. For me, if love had a smell, it would be something strong enough to be invigorating yet gentle enough to be endearing. Some of the scents which resemble love the most are the scent of a rose in full bloom and a freshly prepared cup of coffee (latte, to be precise). Sounds cliched? Mind you, do not view these objectively.This rose is not the one you propose with. This is the one which you adorn your love with, putting it into their hair imparting its fragrance to the beautiful locks. Close your senses to the outside world, and take into your hands a rose as vibrant as the beating heart. Slowly bring it closer, and take a deep breath. As you inhale the fragrance and it become a part of your fabric, it starts to hum in a gentle vibrations.
Love fills me with energy and also provides me a sense of comfort, as if it is assuring me that this energy, this positive surge within me can only take me higher.
The way a rose smells, its not just sweet, its not just strong. It has a flow within itself. Have you ever looked at a rose and felt that it is glowing? The smell of rose, it is something that would immediately make me feel like i’ll place it in my pocket and never let go.
This is the cup of coffee that you hold with both your hands, embracing its warmth and absorbing it into yourself as the world stretches and awakens, as if spurred on by your imagination and the aroma. Whenever I have walked into a cafe, the overpowering smell of coffee streams into my lungs and creates a positive space inside me. The smell of coffee makes me feel like if I close my eyes, I can fill that space with anything. That is what love feels like to me. Something that makes me strong and safe at the same time. Something that completes me.
Its almost as if the coffee beans are travelling to each cell of your being and waking them up from a deep slumber. The smell somehow changes the state of a person, somehow arousing them up, like love changes a person, making them see a lot more in life. Somewhere in the wafting steam from the cup of coffee, I sense the complex flow of emotions that love is composed of.
- Hate: – If love was the first emotion that was taken up, justice must be done to its negative counterpart. Hatred, justified or unjustified, is one of the strongest spices in the potpourri of our emotional palate. While love incites wistful gazes, hugs and kisses, hate inspires action, destruction and sometimes, even wrath. The sting, the tears and the very interest and presence that hatred conveys, it only reminds me of the almost untraceable, but absolutely not ignorable, scent of chilies being fried in oil. You cannot place the smell, just like you eventually forget why you hate the person. You just continue to do so. It stings your eyes and burns the side of your nose when you smell it, regardless of you being a chef or the intended eater.Hatred burns. Not with the putrid stench of decay and death, not with the urgent flame of an accident, but with a careful constant burning sensation, which takes hours to go, regardless of all the water you douse it with. The red chilies of hatred are not easily subdued.
Definitely not a smell that you want to experience in the excess, but just the right amount for the right people is necessary for a complete dish.
To be Continued…
(P.S: Suggestions regarding the emotions to explore are most welcome)
Arnab Mukherjee 