Moral-Immoral

The irony of a society

That considers it immoral to have consensual sex before marriage

But moral to be raped by your own husband after marriage

Weapon

I used to fear the sword
A weapon of destruction, malice

But as I look around today
And see the world

Cracked
Bleeding
Split
Carved up into pieces

I realise that the sword
Is nothing compared to hate.

Kaash

काश

एक शब्द जिसमे ज़िन्दगी का हर अफ़सोस समा जाता है

कुछ सुनहरे पलों के इंतज़ार में हर लम्हा बीत जाता है

काश ऐसा होता, काश वैसा होता

ये कहते सोचते पूरा जीवन निकल जाता है।

*******

<English transliteration>

Kaash

Ek shabd jisme zindagi ka har afsos samaa jaata hai

Kuch sunehre palon ke intezaar mein har lamha beet jaata hai

Kaash aisa hota, kaash waisa hota

Ye kehte sochte poora jeevan nikal jaata hai

Inner Thoughts

Maybe

The reason we don’t like spending time alone with our thoughts

Is that we’re terrified of what we might discover

Crime

As the jail burst with new entrants,
A single question arose:

“What’s your crime?”
“My voice.”

“What’s yours?”
“My religion.”

Horror

As I see yet another news report about a rape in the country, I wonder what horrifies me more:

The news itself

Or the ease with which my eyes move on to the next headline

Safe Space

Sometimes
To get out of your comfort zone
You need
Not a push
Not a nudge
But just a space
Free of judgement

Crossroads

Maybe
Who we are
Is just a series of crossroads
Between
Who we were
And who we want to be

Your Love

You say you love flowers
Yet you pluck them without a thought

You say you love animals
Yet you serve them proudly for dinner

You say you love trees
Yet you cut them for your own greed

You say you love rivers
Yet you fill them with your filth

You say you love all humans
Yet you unabashedly watch them suffer

You say you love me
Yet you wonder why I look at you in fear.

Best Intentions

Sometimes, the deepest scars

Are caused

By the best of intentions

Fragile Communities

When did we become those people
Who take offence so easily
Whose identity, community, faith
Is so fragile
That
A word
A question
A thought
Can shatter it into pieces?

LoveJihad

Two of them looked at the photograph.

One saw only love,
The other saw only religion.

You're Beautiful

Sometimes I wonder
If I were to have a daughter
Would I be about to look her in the eye
And say
You're beautiful
As you are
Every bit of you
Your height
Your weight
Your skin
Your hair
No matter what
You're beautiful

Would I really be able to tell her that
When I can't even convince myself of it?

Educated: Change the Narrative

पढ़ लिख कर अच्छे नंबर तो ले आया

बस, थोड़ी इंसानियत सीख न पाया।

Topped his class

Became CEO

Beat his wife every night.

Learnt the language

Became a great orator

Led a mob lynching.

Cleared medical school

Became a doctor

Overcharged every patient.

Got the best marks

Became a professor

Raped his student.

Cleared the entrance exam

Got the big house she always wanted

Abused her maid every day.

History

As I read history

About the wars, the atrocities, the genocides

I often wonder

How did people just stand by

And let it all happen?

And then I realize

That one day 

Maybe not that far into the future

People will wonder the same thing about us.

The Heroes

You read stories all around you

Stories of people who've faced poverty, war, violence, 

Rock bottom of every kind

And have emerged as icons 

Of pure grit, courage and inspiration

And amidst this inspiration

A strange realization strikes:

You already have a life devoid of these obstacles

So what are you going to do with that life?

The Perfect Blend

One cup of coffee. One cup of chai.  Spontaneous conversation.

Failure

She traveled the world.

She rescued animals.

She wrote several books.

She ran her own company.

She spread smiles everywhere she went.

But still, she was considered a failure.

She wasn't married.

Choice

To invest, or to donate.

My future, or someone's present.

Hate

Hate

It has a domino effect

Spreading uncontrollably

Destroying everything it touches

Until, before you know it

Nothing is left standing.