Poetry at Sangam
Poetry at Sangam showcases poetry in English and translations as well as essays on poetics and news of new releases.
You won’t believe me
if I tell you
that our jaarer baati
can magically drag you all
to our tanda
at the mud fire
where our bellies turn into pans
to warm the earth.
The unseen rawness
of our baatis
will suck out the saliva
of the tongue
and eat it away, chewing hard.
The baatis are birthed
from the fingers
of our mothers and grandmothers:
The war between fingers and dough
shapes the hunger.
The round baati
blushes at the touch of the fiery coal.
After the ends of the baati are roasted
And the evil eye of nature shooed away,
the night dreams give the final touch
as daadi offers a piece to the fire.
The assortment of baatis
sitting on the lap of the chaadla
like a solar system.
We chew the baatis with green chillies
and onion with nasnear khodi
We, the wanderers, move with the wind
on the universal shape of baati
as pollen dust.
Beneath the baati
all our tandas rest embracing shades
of Makka and Jaar stalks
and turmeric fingers
turn our lives
into a lawn.
This site is designed and maintained by GONECASE