In the name of democracy
An entire state is terrorized
Decade after decade
Freedoms are curbed
Protests are brutally suppressed
People are brutally oppressed
Education is diluted

In the name of democracy
The Army turns from protector to oppressor
Every soldier marching past
With his head held high
Sounds the death knell
For every man, woman and child
In the name of democracy
Soldiers break into houses
Wielding their massive rifles
As if it is their birthright
As the peace and harmony within
Is replaced by abject terror
In the name of democracy
All morals are flung out of the window
As the women are *****
The men who challenge this unspeakable atrocity
Are swiftly silenced with bullets
As the children begin screaming in terror
They are molested, one by one
Until the trauma overcomes them
Such that, they lose their voices
They lose their minds
They lose their hearts
Meanwhile, the soldiers slip away quietly
Having completed a good day of work
In the name of democracy

In the name of democracy
India and Pakistan, warring for decades
Use Kashmir as a bait
As a means to satisfy
Their unquenchable thirst for power
As the potion simmers on
Fuelled by hate on both sides
Curfews and lockdowns follow with alarming regularity
Schools and colleges are shut down
Political organizations are banned
The Internet is crippled
Mobiles and landlines are killed
Even the most feeble of all protests
Is brutally quelled with bullets and grenades

In the name of democracy
Consent is dead and buried
As nationalism takes centre stage
The world watches on silently
Allowing India, the oppressors-in-chief
To reclaim the moral high ground
And suddenly proclaim themselves as saviours
Leaving the beleaguered Kashmiris no choice
But to bow to their captors
Their dreams of self-determination
Shattered ruthlessly in the course of a mad, mad day
In the name of democracy

As every day begins
My heart beats with anticipation
With every call I make
There is a spring in my step
However, all good things come to an end
As the day wears on
The white clouds fade away
And are replaced
By monstrous, jet black clouds
With every call I make
My shoulders droop
My eyes lose their lustre
My hands begin to shake
My voice begins to falter
As the rain of despair begins
My mind loses its focus
I lose all sense of direction
The pile of work on my desk
Grows taller and taller
Until it outgrows Mount Everest
Just when I begin to think
That things can't get any worse
My boss cranks up the pressure
To such a level
That my heart beats faster and faster
I begin to splutter and choke
My mouth begins to foam
My face starts turning blue
With a rapidly shaking hand
I stagger towards my water bottle
Tripping and almost falling on the way
Eventually, with a supreme effort
I manage to prise the bottle cap loose
As I take a gulp of water
I spill a few drops on the floor
Very slowly and steadily
My breathing begins to return to normal
But not before my heart is filled
With a deep desire
To hear the three magic words
"You are fired"

Being a recruiter is never easy
Hours and hours of research
To identify the right people
Followed by a truckload of calls
Every time a candidate says no
It is you, who loses
The client piles on the pressure
Your boss keeps on nagging you
Like a fly that constantly buzzes around your table
While you are having lunch
Your confidence collapses
Like a house of cards
When you pick up the phone
Your hands shake
Your face is filled with drops of sweat
Your heart beats faster than ever
You hastily key in ten digits
As you click on 'Dial'
You wait with bated breath
Counting from one to twenty
As your call is received
You mumble and stammer
The other person snaps "Wrong number"
And bangs the phone
You smack yourself on the forehead
How could you make such a silly mistake?
As you dial the right number
You summon every last ounce of your courage
As the candidate answers
In a bored and haughty voice
You introduce yourself in a suave manner
As you take him through the job
Your smooth talk is interrupted
With a rude "Not interested. Thank you"
This opens the floodgates
For more and more rejections
Until you are left, with nothing to do
But to pick up the pieces of your broken heart
Being a recruiter is never easy

Every day, as the clock strikes ten
You march into the office
Swinging your arms back and forth
In a crude imitation of Herr ******
As the eyes of every employee
Focus on your cold, black ones
As if by magic
A deafening silence fills the office
As Hope turns into Despair
Trust turns into Betrayal
Confidence turns into Insecurities
Love turns into Hate
And Peace turns into Pieces

As your ringing voice fills the air
Resulting in a cacophony
Louder than those infernal firecrackers
Everybody's worst nightmare comes true
As you yell at your team
Mocking all their painstaking efforts
Dehumanizing them with casteist remarks
Your voice cuts into their feelings
Like a knife through butter
Leaving wounds so deep
That the scars shine brightly
For the rest of their lives

You are not an employer
You are a cruel, sadistic tyrant
Hiding behind the facade
Of a concerned maternal figure
However, as with all tyrants
The day will eventually arrive
When you are toppled
From your lofty throne
Your business will sink
Just as the Titanic did
You will be in huge debt
Your ill-gotten gains evaporating into thin air
As your erstwhile employees have their last laugh
It is you, who will be left
With wounds so deep
That the scars shine brightly
For the rest of your miserable life

Is it wrong to forget?
The mind is an ocean
Filled to the brim with thoughts
Rising like a crescendo
Before plummeting sharply
Like a tsunami
Then there are the feelings
Lurking around every nook and corner
Ready to catch you unawares
And take a juicy bite of your leg
As sharks do
As you go deeper and deeper
Total chaos reigns
In the form of perceptions and judgements
Those ****** icebergs
Which can sink even the unsinkable ships

Is it wrong to forget?
The mind is an ocean
Deeper than the Pacific
More stormy than the Atlantic
Even as you swim with the tide
Alternating between hope and despair
With every high and low
You barely manage to stay afloat
Eventually being ******
Into a whirlpool of depression
As you go round and round
You sink lower and lower
Until you forget where you are
You forget who you are
And you wonder
How you came into existence
So, tell me
Is it really wrong to forget?

I have placed my trust in you
Not once, not twice
But for years and years
Every time you fail to deliver
I tell myself to be patient
I say, "give it some time"
As I wait and wait
You begin to take me for granted
Your service becomes poorer and poorer
While my wallet grows thinner and thinner
I tell myself to be patient
But my face grows redder and redder
My eyes begin to blaze
My teeth grow sharper and sharper
My mouth begins to foam
My fists begin to clench
My finger and toe nails grow sharper and sharper
Still, I tell myself to be patient
But then you fail spectacularly
When it matters the most
This is the last straw
With an almighty roar
I pounce on you
Heedless of your frantic cries for mercy
And tear you to pieces
While I drink your blood
I pause for a moment
To savour the just retribution
For all these years of injustice
For all these years of betrayal
I was patient, for a long time
But patience too, has its limits

Two years of toil
Two years of utmost dedication
Two years of perseverance
Where are the fruits?

As every month begins
My eyes light up
In keen anticipation
That my efforts would be rewarded
However, the wait is so long
That it kills me from within
As I wonder whether my time is valued
For you, time is precious
You expect quality and speed
At the same time
Is it wrong
For me, to expect the same
From your side?
However, all I end up doing
Is keeping a straight face
While I listen to your lame excuses
As I wonder whether my time is valued
Whether my efforts are valued
Whether it is worth
Burning the midnight oil
For an employer
To whom I matter
Only when money chases him
The same money
Which I am denied
Again and again
Till I am a fool
To even dream
That my dues would be cleared