Sisters of the Earth
After fixing flowers in my hair,
I roam around, a sister of the earth.
I have launched a ball above
to my little brother, the sky.
The river mothers all us three.
The father is an absentee.
My neighbouring planet has changed
and someone else has come as a tenant.
Now on, all my mail will go to his address.
I have called the nymphs from heaven
who are happy to be ridden of Indra.
Tonight, we all friends will sleep together.
If Vishnu’s Mohini wants,
she can take her liquor and come stay here...
Anupam Singh was born in the Pratapgarh district of Uttar Pradesh in 1986. She went to Allahabad University for her higher education and did her research work from Delhi University. Her poems have been regularly published in prestigious Hindi newspapers and magazines. She has been an active participant in women’s and people’s movements. She has also worked as an Associate Fellow in the Delhi Vidhan Sabha for three years.
Areeb Ahmad (he/they) is a Delhi-based writer, critic, and translator who loves to champion indie presses and experimental books. He has served as an Editor-at-Large at Asymptote and as a Books Editor at Inklette Magazine. Their writing and translations have appeared or are forthcoming in Gulmohur Quarterly, trampset, The Bombay Literary Magazine, The Hooghly Review, MAYDAY, and elsewhere. Their reviews and essays have been published in Scroll.in, Business Standard, Hindustan Times, Strange Horizons, The Caravan, and elsewhere. Areeb is @bankrupt_bookworm on Instagram and @Broke_Bookworm on Twitter/X.