Geeta Varma, INDIA

Exclusive: Best of Women Poetry: Edited by Padmaja Iyengar-Paddy

IN NIRBHAYAS’ COURT

Sairandhri, born of fire, once again,

Let your hair tumble down

There are Keechakas on the prowl

Burn them all down

Draupadi, once again,

Let your voice silence them all

As you did in the court

After Dussasana dragged you down

Heaping insults and pain

Your fire, Panchali, shamed them all!

Here Duryodhanas multiply and flourish

Escaping the noose

Panchali, once again, let your power seep through

Let your fire of passion burn,

Here, we struggle doormatted, suffocated,

Burnt, murdered - upholding your values

Krishna, Kaali, call your namesake, once again,

For he has closed his eyes

Wake him up once again

To save this womankind.

(Names appearing in italics are characters from Indian epic Mahabharata. Krishna and Kali are an Indian God and Goddess respectively)

Geeta Varma has been a teacher and a journalist for many years. She has taught in Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary school and The School KFI for a few years. She has conducted Creative workshops for children and used to run a Creative Learning Centre for children where they could explore and learn. She has been an Educational Consultant for some time. She has written for publications such as Aside, The Hindu Metro plus, Trident, Ritz, City Express, The Deccan Herald and so on.  She has recently published a book of poems, ‘To my Violin’ and ‘Twilight ours’ along with her husband Shreekumar Varma.

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Best of Women Poetry -2020 :: Setu, March 2020