by Anupama Krishnakumar
A river of words, words of women from the world over. Tarangini represents the writing voice of women. A poem by Anupama Krishnakumar.
As I meander through rugged terrains
braving great heights, boulders,
devious turns and all…
Bystanders watch me from the sides
with eyes cold and steely, and some that shine
with grace, warmth and respect.
I see you, considering me with curiosity.
Oh human, do you wonder who I am?
Call me Tarangini….the woman, the river –
the river of words, flowing from the mighty pens
of women of all hues.
I carry within me as gurgles,
wise impressions, suppressed fears,
piercing disappointments, searing anger,
brave proclamations, fearless dreams,
brutal realities, horrifying truths,
uplifting revelations and glimmering optimism…
The words in me are constant murmurs,
at times faint and sometimes loud,
firm and emphatic, nonetheless,
a mix of mirth, ire, anguish and hope,
drawn from a million streams of stories,
both muddy and clear, flowing into me.
The world, I see, is often disconcerted
with my persistent, unrelenting presence.
So it teases me with harsh pebbles
that sting my gliding surface;
the tranquil (misleading) ripples
prompting riotous laughter…
Yet every pebble that strikes
the rock bottom of my being,
gathers into a collective force
that hits back uproariously.
I become a seething force,
gushing forward, breaking barriers.
I send out to the startled world,
a message loud and clear; that
I’m unfazed, unbeaten, unapologetic,
no matter what you do to me…
For I am Tarangini, the unstoppable –
the flowing voice of women all over!
Anupama Krishnakumar is an engineer-turned-journalist. She co-edits Spark and is also the author of two books, ‘Fragments of the Whole’, a flash fiction collection and ‘Ways Around Grief & Other Stories’, a short-story collection. Her website is www.anupamakrishnakumar.com.
