The Maze of Stomach Knots

You're the unforgiving muscle spasm,

My toe hitting the foot of the bed,

The depths of my throat burning,

The itch in the corners of my tongue.

You're the morning's cold floor,

My left eye twitching in the afternoon,

The evening's soothing black tea,

The quiet night's loud wall clock.

You're the foam drowning in the cup,

My dinner looking cold and neglected,

The dawn's fitful lamp battle,

The colours of half-sleepy patterns.

You're the ripped band-aid in the drawer,

My moody playlist in traffic fights,

The lipstick stain on the bathroom mirror,

The red dress I don't like anymore.

You’re the scrapbook painted with glitter,

My high school’s wrinkly uniform,

The whispers of the deserted hallway,

The shiver beneath the winter blanket.

- Sayantani Sarkar.

Fariyaad

Galiyon se tere guzarte hai,

Jab ki raah ho meri, manzil nahi.

Junoon ke sawaalon ka kya jawaab de,

Mohabbat ho meri, zidd nahi.

Deewangi ne ye dastaan sunn ke poocha,

Tabaah kaise na hue iss intehaan mein?

Nazrein haske jhuki aur kaha,

Hum toh fanaa hoke abaad hue unke ishq mein.

Kahin toh hogi wo zameen,

Jiska aasmaan itna bereham nahi.

Dhoondne nikle hai uss mulk ko,

Jahaan mera naam tujhse judaa nahi.

Intezaar karenge tera uss mod pe,

Alfaaz iss kahaani ke saath le aana.

Jo mil na paaye mere sheher ka rasta,

Deewaro se mera wajood mitaake aana.

- Sayantani Sarkar. 

Wo Teri Dosti

Khule hawa pe tairte
Badalo si thi teri dosti,
Zameen se bandhe pairo ko
Pankh laga gayi teri dosti.

Bheed mein khoye huye haatho ko
Saath ka saath dila gayi teri dosti,
Thehri hui ghazal ki khamoshi par
Alfaaz saja gayi teri dosti.

Bikhre se khaali aasmaan mein
Taare gina gayi teri dosti,
Kore se saade kaaghazo par
Ghazal bhar gayi teri dosti.

Yun hi sanng haste-chalte
Yaad aakar rula gayi teri dosti,
Anjaane palo mein tujhpe marke
Jeena sikha gayi teri dosti.

- Sayantani Sarkar.

To Paris, My Love!

Let’s pack our bags

And run far away,

Away from the noise,

Never to look back again.

To the land where love lives,

To the city where hearts wander,

To the lanes where artists grow,

To the corners of dancing rainbows.

Let’s sit at a roadside café,

And watch stories pass by,

Till our cups are filled with ink,

Till the sun collides with the stars.

Let’s touch the droplets

That taste like romance,

Let’s watch the fairy lights

Embrace the black night.

Let’s trace the map

To the lost bookstore,

Let’s find among the rusty yellow pages,

The sound of writers witty and unknown.

Let’s run away;

With lips full of promises,

And a journal of empty pages,

To paint a canvas in eternity,

To paint a sonnet of you and me. 

- Sayantani Sarkar.