Simulation Poem by Ajit Das

Basic tents in a bleak setting;
humans crammed inside;
a fire burning outside
to ward off the biting cold -
you might be thinking….

No, you're mistaken.
They're mock refugee camps
where the urban rich
roleplaying to experience
how extreme poverty feels like.

Will it be their another pastime
to find fodder for social media
or a genuine desire
to understand the plight
of the uprooted humanity?

The role is reversed:
the poor trying to get a feel
of the elite life-style,
staying for a few days
in a luxurious five star hotel.

Once they step out on the street,
the naked oppressive slum
that has stripped them
of their dignity and identity
hits them like a blast of icy wind.