freedom to different people means different things
various memories it evokes, myriad thoughts it brings
to different minds in different places
brought up differently, who see different faces
of this world we live in: this strange world
n to match it, we have freedom, a strange word
that conjures up images, some meaningful, some absurd
i read about it in the history book
of independence and the khadi look
of battles fought n revolts n bravery
freedom, I read, is the opposite of slavery
and freedom is to wear my hair long
freedom is that lata mangeshkar song
a pierced navel or an eyebrow
another hour playin in the snow
freedom is a solemn pledge
a subject of my choice when i go to college
freedom is a swim in
the open ocean
more dessert, an extra portion
or maybe freedom’s just a notion
for the high n mighty
like an unlimited shopping spree
freedom of opinions, ideas big n small
to set up my own bhelpuri stall
wherever i want to, without havin to pay
a bribe to the policeman to let me stay
freedom is a divorce from my wife
freedom to paint for the rest of my life
without having to bother about the next meal
free to not have an opinion, not feel
free of the tyranny of society
of diktats n morals and propriety
a midnight stroll under the street lamps
no more censors, stifling clamps
no thieves, no thugs, no goons sizing me up
no one to tell me how to hold my cup
the freedom to have legally grown
to owning a rickshaw-stand, with rickshaws of my own
just like the one that for five years i’ve drawn
for someone else. free to not lie
free to kill myself, to die
some may have a more holistic view
freedom of choice and generating revenue
of action, speech, and of the thoughts
for everyone, the haves and the have-nots
to be able to wear my turban, and beard unshorn
and the traditional dress my forefathers had worn
or to cut my hair, that my grandmom holds so dear
to live without the constant fear
of being killed for who you are
a job to earn a living, freedom from war
to do away with stereotypical classification
biases, castes n classes n their various ramifications
freedom to live with integrity
freedom to die with dignity
not get beaten by my drunk husband
for my research, a decent fund
without looking for conservation implications
not havin to explain to my relations
why I’m still single, livin alone
free, for my sins, to atone
to overcome this inbuilt, overpowering, bowing deference
get rid of this stammer that makes me sound dense
freedom is a question of my sexual preference
to enter the temple just like anyone else
to walk on the pavement without holding out my elbows
not bother about male company wherever one goes
in public, to hold my date’s hand
to move freely in my own land
or in the land of my forefathers n ancestors
n not get stoned by angry protesters
freedom to dress up the way i want
n not live with your jibes n brutal taunts
freedom from thoughts of all that’s gone
freedom from the righteous anger of the morons
freedom is the space - my space, legit
where I can be poor n possessionless, n laugh about it.
(from a notebook from sometime back; retouched)
