ALICE IN WONDERLAND

Once upon a time
She had a name
Not now,
Now umpteen names
But only one role she has.
Once upon a time
She was a village girl
A cute pretty girl
In jacket and blouse
Not now
Parents she had,
Loving and caring were they,
Siblings and close friends
She had,
All full of warmth and love.
Not now.
Her hairs thick and long
Up to the buttocks,
Face angelic
No artificial make-up
She like a giggling sparkling stream
in her anklets
Cynosure of all village boys
Envious girl-friends
But they liked her, loved her
Not now
Went to school, college
All successfully completed,
Began to apply for jobs
In came a saviour from the distant city one day
Her ‘sister’ in the neighbourhood
After a lapse of years
She was a new ‘avatar’
Cropped hair, lipstick always on her lips, expensive clothes she wore
A variety entertainment,
sarees, salvar and kammeese,
Churidhar, Top, Jeans
And glittering ornaments
Fruits of hard-earned labour,
She told her with hubris
A lovable, caring, warm one
She hugged the girl
Kissed her rosy cheeks
Praised her prettiness in abundance
A job offered in the bustling city
An attractive job.
Parents, siblings, friends,
Happiness abound
All for good
Lucky girl
All unanimous in views
At last came the D-day
Both boarded the train to the city
As the train trudged
Along slowly
Tears streamed down
The cheeks of all.
But all for good
The only silver-lining.
Unfamiliar lands, unfamiliar faces all
She like ‘Alice in wonderland’
Train covered
Unfamiliar territiories
In the broad daylight
The beast ended
Its run at the main station
The city like a seductive enchantress
Welcome my village girl,
The enchantress seemed to whisper in her ears
Faceless crowds, blaring sirens,
Vehicles hooting past
Girl, you like ‘Alice in Wonderland’,
No, ‘Wonder world’ this
City continued to whisper
Both boarded a taxi
Sped thru streets
Sky high buildings
Faceless crowd
Oceans of slums
Street childs in ragged clothes
Left behind
The ‘beetle’ reached somewhere
Both alighted
Lady climbed the stairs
She like an
Obedient child
Some climbing up, some climbing down
No idea
Entered a room
A pan-chewing lady in her sixties
Expensive clothes she wore
Bunch of chains hanging from her waist
Mischievous, sly glance
She cast at the lady and the
‘Daughter’, ‘Alice’ she called
‘Alice’
‘Really cute you are’
‘Quite sleepy she is’
Her ‘sister’ at the lady
‘Long journey you know’
Alice’s ‘sister’ blinked once more,
Take a steaming tea
Have a nice sleep
All Mamy will arrange,
‘Shall come now’
She shook her head.
Innocence of a child
Reflected on her face
Mamy guided her
To an empty room
Saw many faces
Along the way
All in expensive clothes and raunchy smiles

All pretensions, pity and pain underneath
Like unseen undercurrents
No idea.
Tea came,
Sipped it,
Drowsiness she felt,
Lied on the bed,
No idea where she was flowing to
Hours gone
In the shock and pain
Excruciating it was
Naked she was
Bleeding she was
Her loud cries
Like in a wilderness
The ‘Mamy’ with beastly
Eyes came inside,
Slapped her left and right
Her mouth gagged by a
Faceless beast
She kicked her hands and legs in the vaccum
Writhing in excruciating pain,
Hours of silence
Looking at the ceiling
She lied
Spring,
Autumn,
Summer,
Winter,
Nature’s cycles came and went
Unawares,
No complaints,
No anger,
No emotions,
All pretensions
Like the victims she saw the first day
Pendulum kept on
Moving to and fro
Time never stops
Stories never end…