I come from Kashmir
where land is green & white snow bed
and I come from Kashmir
where roads aren’t black but are red.

I come from Kashmir
where Daughter Tajamul brought Gold
and I come from Kashmir
where daughter Nafiya craves for her father’s body and lost his soul.

I come from Kashmir
where journalists get Peter Mackler & Pulitzer awards
and yet I come from Kashmir
where journalists get charged under UAPA as a reward.

I come from Kashmir
where Thekedar gets benefits under the Roshni Act
and I come from Kashmir
where an internet shutdown of 551 days was for every sect.

I come from Kashmir
where Gupta g ranked 1st in the country
and yet I come from Kashmir
where youth have to carry ID’s to prove their identity.

I come from Kashmir
which was known for its cultural dress Pheran
and I come from Kashmir
which now has more business in selling Kaffan.

I come from Kashmir
which Allama called the valley of braves
and I come from Kashmir
which now is the valley of Graves.

I come from Kashmir
which was called Earth’s Heaven
and yet I come from Kashmir
which now is the World’s Biggest Prison.

I come from Kashmir
where Chinars paint the autumn gold
and I come from Kashmir
where every spring, new tombstones unfold.

I come from Kashmir
where Dal Lake mirrors the moon’s glow
and I come from Kashmir
where blood taints the rivers’ flow.

I come from Kashmir
where children dream of books and play
and I come from Kashmir
where childhoods vanish in smoke and clay.

I come from Kashmir
where lovers once whispered in gardens wide
and yet I come from Kashmir
where silence now walks side by side.

I come from Kashmir
where poets wrote of love and fate
and yet I come from Kashmir
where verses now carry only weight.

I come from Kashmir
which history books fail to define
and I come from Kashmir
which lives between the headlines’ lines.

Permanent are
The memories trapped in a scar
And though a few might fade,
It'd be quicker to count every star
At times I don't notice them
Other times they're another prison bar
Attempts to hide them are made
But mummification seems a step too far
In my day to day they are
All I can see,
Haunting my reality
They've stolen the getaway car
And I'll not make it far
In this mangled avatar

©2024

Imagine the prison cell
a room of cement and metal.
Laying on the cement benches,
comfort is not an option.
Cold stainless steel toilets in the corner
privacy is against the rules..
Now wonder to yourself,
if you will ever see the light of day again.
The plasticity of your mind forms to the brutal environment.
The food is awful
but you eat it all and want more.
Your new companions are others who are psychologically impaired from this situation of damnations.

Learn to meditate, learn to swim,
learn to look deeper within.
Until here in the forest finally free
and there's no more fear of what shall be!

It feels like Someone flung open a Window
A Window in my Mind
To Release me from the prison of Time
Now I BE.

DLR &
08/07/2024
☀♥ƸӜƷ✿♬

Life's biggest illusion is the freedom we're shown
Cause there's only so far you are able to roam
It never occurred to me that it was strange to be in this place alone
At first,
While trying to escape I wore my finger tips to the bone
But now,
I've got it so bad that I call this catacomb home
No land line phone,
No WiFi hotspot zone
Cut off from the outside inside this prison of skull and bone

©2024