Tonight I Wait Tonight I wait for the moonTo come outFrom the shadows of the cloudsIt gives away faint glimpses.As and when I see I get to hear from you tooI wait patientlyFor the moon to bring you to meFinally I clock myselfI stare long The cloud shyly teases me It was 1.Misty eyed, I…
All posts in Issue 7, April 2026
Rudrajit Paul
Three Magic Balls There are three magic ballsHidden under my bed“Use them wisely,” The blue genie said.One of them is silverand the second one gold-The third one changes from red to blueWhen it is too cold.One ball is for stopping time,One is for speedThe third will solve allMaths problems indeed!I keep them safe,Hidden from everyoneI…
Ajmira Khatun
The Folding Message Think of the Lojjabatiyou once planteddeep in the soilof your softened heart.When you touchits shy skinwith innocent fingers,it folds into itself—just like your dreams,quietly longingto be loved.Like the constant acheof unspoken words.You only speakthrough poetry—but what about your beloved?Will he ever readyour folded message,if he sitson a planemeant to crash? A Night’s…
Sarbani Chakravarti
Hope and Healing… It’s good to carry some wounds in our hearts,It makes us more humaneAs we embrace our defeat and stand humbled.We embalm our gnawing heartWith acceptance of the incomplete, the broken…We journal the ‘ blessings’ in a notebook At the behest of good friends.We seek solace in the pages of the diaryOr the…
Runa Srivastava
Beyond the Sky I have dreamed of a land beyond the sky,Where mortal griefs no longer tread,Where the tears of earth are left to dry,And beauty wakes the sleeping dead.There the rivers sing in silver tone,Through meadows lit by faery flame,And all who wander there aloneForget from whence or why they came.The stars are thoughts…
Rositta Joseph
A Curse A curse uponThis great landWhere womenAre only worshippedNot loved or valued.Where gold, diamonds,Cars, apartmentsFar outvalue the bride.Where men have dreams, careersAnd women choose amongTheir leftovers.Where ladies must please the universeAnd are ‘ruthless’ if they survive.Mother, sisterMother-in-law, me…So many of usWillingly kneeling toOthers’ dictates.They first ask usTo chooseBetweenBody and soul,And then theyCall us‘Liberated’. Light:…
Madhu Sriwastav
Categorisers I grew up multilingualspeaking Hindi and Bengali Learnt the alphabet in a conventWhite and navy blue in school sheltered me from racist sneershomogeneity camouflagedOnce married with cultural markers I was ‘othered’ becoming a different person overnightMy education, intellect took a backseatAs the colour of my vermillionthe make of my banglesthe drape of my saris…
Oindrila Bhattacharya
The Urban Cantata: A Sonnet? With futile fatigues and montage hopeless,Behind the Radhachura, the weary sun sets.Quite ritualistically the mechanical Kolkata bathesIn the hues of crimson chaos,Portending deafening buzz of nocturnal silence,The city gushes out yellowish cascadesOf jaundiced bile, betraying spontaneous bitterness-As writhe in agonies cacophonous alleysReverberating rote moans of the body-mongers-The pale, yellow moon…
Priyanka Adhikary
Arrival of Unwavering Faith It was a luminous tranquil Sunday, skies painted with brushes of calmA chilly afternoon filled with aromas of true love, coffee beans, radiance and beautyMy power nap was interceded by a tender kiss on the foreheadI woke up to the sight of my beloved lover standing by my bedside like a…
Natasha Kesh
Tripping on Home Cooking Posto and knachalonka,vegetable chop with bhnarer cha,malpua melting into vanilla ice cream,narkalnadu soft as patience,aloo paratha tearing opento dhaniyar curry patar chutney, lebu and mixed-veg achar—love, answering to many names.It begins at the plate.A quiet relationship.Each bite more than survival,each mouthful an emotioncalled saliva without shame.That is food to me.Not just…