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A poem in free verse that incisively looks into the helpless heart of an Indian bride caught in an inevitable arranged marriage that takes her consent as implicit...
A poem in free verse that incisively looks into the helpless heart of an Indian bride caught in an inevitable arranged marriage that takes her consent as implicit…
She sat with arms stretched out before her
Helpless in the moment, expected to savor
The festivities, music and dance around
The carefree laughter drifting in the background
Surrounded by family she was, ostensibly
She felt all alone, staring insensibly
At her hennaed hands, her feet still being treated
Like a canvas by her mehndi artists, art being created
On her limbs by the very best in town, because
The most spectacular wedding in town this was
Expected to be, no expense had been spared–
Despite all this, at her hands she stared
Her movement restricted by the henna that needed
Drying, therefore with outstretched arms she was seated
She smiled, realizing all of a sudden
Her physical helplessness was a reflection
Of her mental state- caught in the rigmarole
Of an elaborate wedding, with hardly a soul
Realizing how unhappy she was, how she
Wanted to run away, to scream hysterically
“This is my life, this is not what I wish”
She wanted to say, but her desires she had squished
The day she had agreed to the marriage arranged
Like a business partnership, things could not be changed
Now, her assent inexorably bound her to comply-
As she contemplated, a tear dropped from her eye
She could not wipe it, but no one asked why
She was crying, her tears were also misunderstood
To be tears of joy, no one around her could
Guess how miserable she felt, she was afraid to voice
Her concerns, her fear had led her to make this choice
She looked down, inspecting her hands with a sigh
Waiting for her unshed tears and henna to dry…
Image source: pixabay
I am a woman, a physician, a mother and an aspiring writer rolled into one. I write about various aspects of my life, and my preferred form of writing is poetry (or rhyming verses). read more...
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UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
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