Read more poetry at The HyperText by Mitali Chakravarty by clicking here…
I Walk Alone (First published in Hypertext, 2021) I walk alone on the street. Sometimes Durga, sometimes Mary, Sometimes just me, myself — Do I have the right to choose? Beyond the reaches of the veil, The purdah that covers my gait, Beyond the reaches of a man, Of a support, of a claim — Do I have the right to choose? Can I sing to any God I like? Can I live my life on my own terms? Can I walk out to the hills, Take a plunge in the river And retain my honour? Will You cherish me if from a Wanton, I want to become A wife? Will you accept me? A woman of many lives, I have been a warrior, a mother, An astronaut, a leader — And yet you label me as a half, A half who needs support, why? I am also Durga, Mary, Fatima. In my womb, gestates mankind, life.
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