Women farmers in Amritsar making chapatis on a railway track during the ‘rail roko’ agitation in 2020 against the central government’s farm laws Women farmers in Amritsar making chapatis on a railway track during the ‘rail roko’ agitation in 2020 against the central government’s farm laws My Grandmother’s House

There is a house now far away where onceI received love. The woman died,The house withdrew into silence, snakes movedamong books, I was then too youngto read, and my blood turned cold like the moonHow often I think of going there,to peer through blind eyes of windows orjust listen to the frozen air,or in wild despair, pick an armful ofdarkness to bring it here to liebehind my bedroom door like a broodingdog…you cannot believe, darling,can you, that I lived in such a house andwas proud, and loved, I who have lostmy way and beg now at strangers’ doors toreceive love, at least in small change?

Kamala Das, Kerala

(Born in Kerala on March 31, 1934, Kamala Das was an influential Indian poet. Das commenced her literary journey with her poetry collection, Summer in Calcutta, in 1965. Her poetry was deeply personal, exploring desire and the complexities of womanhood. Fearlessly confronting societal taboos, she explored sensuality and relationships with raw honesty.)

Bhatti (Furnace)

In the furnaces of their homesWomen offer their entire livesAnd keep thinkingPerhaps!They are ripeningSlowly but surely they will be refinedInto pure goldThen suddenly…Upon feeling the heatThey take a look at themselvesAnd realiseHardly anything has maturedHoweverSo much has been burned.

—Translated from Hindi by Nikhil Pandhi

भट्टी

गृहस्थी की भट्टी में औरतें झोंक देती हैंअपना समूचा जीवनऔर सोचती रहती हैंशायद! कि वे पक रही हैंधीरे - धीरे निखरजाएंगी कुनंदन सीफिर अचानक...महसूसती हैं तापनिहारती हैं खुद कोफिर सोचती हैं किपका तो कुछ नहींकिन्तु...बहुत कुछ जल गया।

Poonam Tushamad, Delhi

(Poonam Tushamad is a Dalit feminist writerhoya88, poet, academic and activist who is the author of several publications, including Madari (2019) and Hindi Dalit Sahitya Mein Jantantrik Mulya: Ek Adhyayan (2022).)

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