A poem on the trauma that transgenders face in our country (and across the world)
A poem on the trauma that transgenders face in our country (and across the world)
Clad in a Sari:
Clad in a sari, 'm not your ordinary Lakshmi
I was eight when I first realised I was better off as a woman,
Of course I wasn't born one
Of course my parents, friends, relatives considered me sick
I ran away, I was only fifteen
'M not sure I was looked for,
It scarcely mattered whether I was alive or dead, hungry or fed!
Because clad in a sari, I wasn't an ordinary Lakshmi.
I didn't know if I should be ashamed
I hadn't murdered, or stolen or raped
I was only more comfortable as a woman
Today I beg by traffic lights
I have no home, no hearth, no one to call mine.
No one waits for me to return home even if it's two hours passed midnight
Even if it's raining hard, biting cold or starkly sunny
Who cares! Clad in a sari, 'm not their ordinary Lakshmi!
I am often denied money, made faces at,
Parents point me out to their children
M a thing of amusement
I make them laugh!
Ask yourself if you would employ me?
If today I walked into your office
Clad in a sari
Looking great, but not quite,
Your ordinary Lakshmi.
I have loved a million faces
But never has anyone looked gently at mine!
I am 22, I have never been praised
Do you realise how painful it is?
I have never worn earrings without lowering my eyes in shame.
Every time I have painted my lips or nails or face
My soul has been pierced by eyes spitting out rancour.
The tik-tok of my heels
Has caused greater repugnance than the 'sham' promises of your leaders.
The sway of my hips evoked greater disdain
Than the slap rendered by your so-called 'masculine' husband.
One look from me can turn your day rancid.
I am insubstantial, my countenance loathsome.
You would speed up your car
While you are on your way to an exam, an interview, a marriage
The very things that I have been denied
Only because clad in a sari
I 'refused' to be your ordinary Lakshmi!
There is no friend I can look up to
No mother I can embrace
No father whose guidance I can seek
No sibling I can share my sorrows with
No partner to listen to my deepest, darkest secrets
No child to caress, to hold in my arms
Is it too much to ask for?
Is it too great a sin?
Should I be sorry that clad in a sari
I am not and will 'never' be your ordinary Lakshmi?
-SANGHAMITRA CHATTERJEE
What a heart touching poem it is. We always say that God is one and only and it is the ultimate power and we don't discriminate whether that power is in a body of a man or a woman. If God can create Radha and krishna separately then God can also create Radha and Krishna together in the the same body. God created Radha in the body of Krishna but we don't respect them or even look at them nicely. Who are we to look down on them who was created by that power who created us! This poem is wonderful and it really is heart touching.
ReplyDeleteThis poem is really good. We often talk about our mental health and the depression that we go though and we have friends and family to share our problems but think about this people who cannot talk about their mental health and the depression they have to go through everyday because of us. Society doesn't accept them not even their parents.
ReplyDeleteThey are true warriors!!
ReplyDeletewinners are not people who never fail,but people who never quit.
amazing poem
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautifully written poem
ReplyDeleteReally touches everyones heart
GREAT INSPIRATION.
ReplyDeleteAmazing poem it really must have taken a lot of time to do it
ReplyDeletewell-written poem
ReplyDeleteAmazing and well written
ReplyDelete