The festival of colour aerates
I wear my attire, original, personal
air the melody , small bells tinkle
music reverberates
flow of my village stream, melody of cuckoo unite
scars of colour in body parts
a new sensation, thousand hearts wave
Life greets
A niche to a perfect living.
Marriage, a social sanction,
heart sanctions the handsome
fairy queen meets the prince
vacant space fulfils, I get lunatic
surrender the heart and soul
fidelity under scanner, I get a punitive action
children too abandon, I regret
he makes me the part of life.
Other woman to his woman, the tag removed
for me a respite, the reliving
the life smiles
learn a new art of living.
His inner space divulges
I qualified his pretest
he studied the art of market
fairy queen can fetch more
lured to join the trade banned
earn and entertain
I get mad, the world came crashing down.
I cannot love twice
Loved too true to keep him
cannot barter the heart for cash and coin
unwanted, thrown at platform
he tied knot further
lost the battle with feet in two boats
a street beggar
sky the roof, earth the bed
moisture and summer new body apparel
the life laughs
The charity home picks, feeds my empty stomach
body paralyses, eyes are open
reflect the love, eternal and divine
cannot tinkle the bell, wave the heart
the wound sore
the scar of the colour spreads body part
love dominates contempt
he rules on my heart still
People know disappearing
I cannot die twice
can go out with death undisclosed
experiencing the life
smiling, laughing and greeting
(This is the story of Ms. Madhu, who is sixty years of age. She is what is known as an “Other Backward Caste” (OBC) of the Dhamtari district, Chhattisgarh. Currently she is a resident at the Missionaries of Charity, Raipur, Chhattisgarh. She was deserted by her husband and later on by another lover. After that, she resorted to staying in a railway station where she was picked by Missionaries of Charity. She has an adult son and daughter.) [Author’s note]
(Basanta kumar kar is Operations Director of Care India. He has written almost sixty poems that meditate upon the real-life voices and stories of extremely disadvantaged women residing in various Indian states as Rajasthan, Delhi, Orissa, Chhatisgarh, UP and Jharkhand. The above poem appears under his unpublished title, The Unfold Pinnacle, a collection of poems that closely engage with the stories of women who suffer from poverty, extreme nutritional insecurity, HIV risk, the dangers of sex work, and social abandonment.) [Editor’s note]
The poems of Basanta, tells the long story in short with all the poetic emotions, essentials for the development professionals to get connected to the issues and challenges.
There are many such cases of deprivation of women in society, which law can not address. The Development Thinkers and Policy makers , need to address the problem, through through a more holistic approach .
May , this poem, make the desired impact on the readers and policy makers , thinkers to do, what is needed.
All the best to Basant.
Excellent poetic expressions mingled with nature to depict the suffering of women.Keep it up Basant Babu.Bidyut Mohanty