“Congratulations, it’s a girl”
Eyes tear up listening to the sound of her cry
Unfeigned blend of joy and elation manifest in the faces
Dark sparkling eyes full of dreamy glitter, met with warm, welcoming smiles
what was coming at her though, little did they realise
Is this a mistake, a huge fault, of hers?
she took birth here, and not in the neighbouring house.
The adjoining house – where respect is not to be cried out for
where the same sun shines, but the rays reflect off the windows a tad bit more.
where the same water tastes a bit more sweeter, a bit more pure
She, who is a gift to her parents – can never be couth enough for the masses,
Will not be treated the same way as others, for she represents 4 generations behind her.
And for them, what once was will not be forgotten
“What happened to your face?”
“Nothing ma, I fell down”
teary eyed mother; powerless at the hands of society
In search of equality, is she losing her sanity?
Is she actually different, her blood defiled?
Trying to gain perspective, her own neck she ties
Knotting it once, twice, rethinking it thrice
Her breathing gets strenuous,
becoming unimaginable to cope;
The constraints pressing her down,
transfer the weight from her mind to the rope.
Faking her smiles, she can no longer hide her cries
I don’t want to live in this crowded, yet ghost town
she kicks the stool away,
she breaks open and flies.
Written by Abhineet Kashyap for MTTN
Artwork by Vishrutha Rao for MTTN
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