I am a Devadasi, not a household woman,
Are we not human?
I was a beautiful village girl by the river bank Brahmaputra,
My straight nose, full lips depicts the picture of perfection as per beauty sutra!
My hair was a rich shade of mahagony,
It flowed in waves to adorn my glowing!
My emerald-green bright eyes framed by long lashes
Seemed to brighten my poverty stricken villages!
lack of food, clothing, housing in persistence,
difficult for my five member siblings existence!
My village has its own poverty threshold,
Multi-dimensional Poverty strikes each household!
Purchasing power parity as well as nominal relative basis
My dream to marry a kind hearted man vanished!
I was searching food for my fragile body hugs,
But I was pulled inside a motor van by some thugs!
Despite me not having the calories required for survival!
They have eaten an undernourished arrival!
The heartless had created a severely distressing event
Which damaged my psyche as a result!
police refused to file a case against them,
as they belong to high class system!
my hunger stricken body had no power and strength,
They had asked me to adopt a life changed!
I am a Devadasi now not a household women of my dream,
I am married to Goddess and per culture, now I have become a man though not human!
Now, I have felt more in ‘control' of my life,
But Criminalization and legality of my work makes me strife!
-X-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
By
Shri Monoranjan Thakur, Nongrim Hills, Shillong
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
A very, very strong poem on this issue that haunts our society and is often brushed under the carpet. Thank you for sharing..
Thank you so much Souren Mondalji for your kind comment.