Ram Krishna reflects on urban alienation and societal unrest across regions in this evocative piece published on DifferentTruths.com.
I’m nobody on the road
howsoever well-dressed:
the face reveals I am just
a stranger in the crowd of
many in a hurry lost
in their own concerns
I see tourists catching fish
with willow wicker baskets
at Panzath Nag in Kulgam
cleaning the spring in May
for paddy harvest
a leader in saffron shawl
in protest against the hijab
incites students to respond
to attendance in class
with a Jai Shri Ram
I watch police lathi charge
people assembled on the road.
to pray on Friday; tensions
run high in Park Circus
I’m delayed again.
in the traffic chaos hit
by disappearing footpaths
demolition drive, clashes
and falling from grace
Brahma’s babies and God’s son
who cares how I look?
Picture design by AI
Prof Ram Krishna Singh, also known as RK Singh, is a widely published, anthologised and translated poet with over 25 poetry collections to his credit. His recent poetry collections include Poems and Micropoems (Southern Arizona Press, USA, 2023), Knocking Vistas and Other Poems (Authors Press), Leaves of Silence: Poems and Micropoems (Authors Press), and Drifty Silence and She: Selected Poems & Micropoems (Edizioni Universum, Capri Leone, Italy, 2025).
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