Foeticide

A man is killed for marrying a girl of higher social stature by her brothers. His wife is pregnant.

Here I am, a part of a woman,
Resting inside her, feeling protected,
She is my mother, she is the one,
Trying her best to keep me unaffected.

Then there is a man who is always around,
He always talks to me, I kick around in joy,
With him, my mother feels we're safe and sound,
Tells me that he's my father, and I, his baby boy.

Sometimes when he's not around, she cries,
Bearing the pain I cause, which she still denies,
Fearing the world, she tells me that I am the one,
A hope of acceptance,all the bad blood shall be gone,

One day I wake up from my sleep to excruciating pain,
My mother seems to be fighting, trying to break away,
She never thought of stopping through all that strain,
Her nightmares had come true, her dreams went astray.

I waited for my father, so that she would calm down,
All this pain would end and I'd go back to sleep,
I heard her telling that while he was out in the town,
Someone had put a bullet in his head skull deep.

She collapsed to the ground suffocating me,
Crying aloud over her destroyed dream,
"Your father ain't gonna come", she tells me,
"Soon it'll be me, but I've to live for you."

I won't buy that ma, I've heard u blame them,
I don't want you to raise me with shame,
I ain't a bastard, I don't want to live like one,
I don't want to come out and be an orphan,

I don't want to be your purpose to live,
In a world of hate, violence and strife,
This is the best thing to you I can give,
I close my eyes, I let go of my life.

Taxi Driver

With a vision restricted to the size of the windshield,
He spoke about the fruits his efforts would yield,
Hands on the steering wheel, his story he would share,
Oblivious to other vehicles' head lights' glare.

Stopping the vehicle to him meant procrastination,
He was eager to get back into the middle of the road,
With a little regret over not getting an education,
Dreamy eyes reflecting a cheap neon light signboard,

He still dreamt of making it big in life,
He laid his plans out in front of me,
Wanting to  put an end to all his strife,
A Bigger, better man he wanted to be.

The devil took over him when he fought,
Over another driver's momentary indiscretion,
A day's hard work was all that he had bought,
It was the day's share of anger and frustration.

Yet he was all smiles when he stopped for me,
Promising that the next day he'd be on time,
And he drove on with all dreams in his mind,
And I walked alone, with mine...

The warrior

He did not dream of a million dollars,
Neither did he dream of instant fame,
Trying to stand with the white collars,
He continued to play the beautiful game.

Dribbling the football like he always did,
For years,it was a gift that he never hid,
Years that he spent under the burning sun,
Bare footed, the football was his only companion.

All those years counted down to that single moment,
The blisters on his foot, his injury prone legs,
Memories of a long struggle called life he buried,
Alongside his demons behind a netted rectangular box.

And so began his waltz, filled with adrenaline,
He was dribbling the ball, again under the burning sun,
Watched by his father, he was a lot more keen,
Trying like he always did, to be his favourite son.

Every single second mattered he was told,
And he ran across the field not wasting any,
But soon something inside him pulled him down,
Done and dusted, his eyes were forced shut.

He died a little later in his father's arms,
The beautiful game was his life and it was over,
His escapade to a beautiful life had done its last harm,
The burning passion in him finally faded away...

Dedicated to D.Venkatesh, Striker, Bangalore Mars, who died on field during a BDFA Division A match. Respect! RIP.