A tongue-in-cheek poem about a sari-clad Indian woman, by Mandakini, exclusively for Different Truths.

Up one, two, three -
Three steps in a trice -
Lightly she trips -
In her six-inch heels -
Loves the limelight
at any price.
 
Vitamins and vital stats intact,
she sails in a garment
that is a parody
of the six yards of grace
called a sari -
“Posh Spice” dressed as “Bhartiya Nari”.
 
Ticking off assets
nattily on display,
Posh heaves her approval,
flutters her eyelashes,
pushes the decorous pallu
to one side of her Body Sway -
Then, after a generous selfie,
Posh marches to slay.

Picture design by Anumita Roy

Mandakini Bhattacherya

Mandakini Bhattacherya, from Kolkata, is an Associate Professor of English and a multi-lingual poet, literary critic and translator. She has her own Poetry Page on the Dallas-based Mad Swirl Magazine. She participated in the All-India Young Writers’ Meet organised by Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi in February 2020.