Issue: Vol. V, No. 3, November-January, 2026-27
Calamity
And
And time rolled over
Like that
The dreamy moment
That
You and I became we
Both of us recited
Slogan of revolution
For those working class people
In our powerful voice
The slogan turned lively
We were deeply emotional for the downtrodden
Cutting up the cartons
We made placards
Powerful weapon
Our voice strong
There was no place
Our voice could not be found
Appearing interviews for jobs
Turned into mere routine
Protest continued
In our strong voice
You bagged a job
A government job
A Grade III one
We rejoiced
Slogans were in our lips
The slogans
In your lips
Getting gradually weakened
Was noticed
Time was such
Another day
Turned into a seller
In a huge shopping mall
I too forgot
Keeping track of transaction
Correctly
What slogan did we recite
And when
Cry of the Forest
The sun would rise today too
Colouring the eastern sky crimson
The sun would perform it’s task
Spreading the heat of midday
The sun would complete the task of setting today also
The path of the sun would not change
Just because it is a new year
The sequence of rise
and setting remains the same
There is great change
When the trees quiver
When the chirpings of the birds
Making the trees happy
Turns into shrieks
The animals in the jungle feel distressed and cower
The forest man would quiver
In the journey of the sun
Between rising and setting
The cries of the birds would waft in smoke
And
And a group of lunatics
Indulging in brutal luxury
Translated by Bibekananda Choudhury
Dr. Meena Devi Baruah is an Assamese poet and author based in Doomdooma, Tinsukia, Assam. Her poems have been published in Prantik and other leading magazines of Assam. She has published four collections of poems.
Bibekananda Choudhury is a writer and translator based in Guwahati, Assam.