malala

malala

in the desert
folklores tell us
a chattel she was
a commodity
to be traded
not much has changed
with ghungroo* and
mangalsutra*
enslaved she remained
but a new dawn
is ushering in
a new awareness
to undo the
centuries of
injustice

*ghungroo: a musicl anklet worn around the feet of courtesan and dancers

*manglasutra: a necklace to mark the status of a married woman

Hand prints of women (Maharaja s wives) who committed sati in Meherangarh Fort in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. Sati was cruel ancient practice where a widowed Hindu women would immolate herself on her husbands funeral pyre.