Poetry 2019 Longlist, Nivedita Narsapuram

Debu's Quandary

Debu sits by the bonfire, 

fueling the fire with twigs

He held one between his fingers 

like a cigarette, 

that his mother forbid him from 

Caught in the wraps of geometry

and algebraic expressions, 

Debu was busy in learning 

how to make a living 

till Clint patted his back 

Lanky, young Clint 

his long hair tied with a rubber band, 

like the one his mother had.

Clint prodded him to taste chow mean, 

with a hint of pork 

He gave him half his cigarette, 

as a sign of friendship 

He made Debu a taste of his world,

a taste of his life 

But mother did not like how Debu smelt: 

Of freedom, adolescence, and a non-Brahmin caste