Theater

                dharati                 dhaani

                                dhamak dha nee 

                translate

                                no italics

surrender-blend

fuse-refuse

                                tongues crushed by school benches 

Mumtaz Sheikh

this alaap this grunt

                this river rushing downhill 

                                to you i sing 

manufactured skulls explode 

                                                around us

                                no edges

Rangmanch

                colors rub on soul-stage

                sun spreads on garbage heaps

                                                piercing plastic

                                tickling unbearable

                                stench nourishing

                everything that walks

dogs

cats

pigs

rats

goats

humans

                cows      crows

                                refuse        refuse 

H a l a k-m a l a k                    r i v e r s

               rise         kick         curse

               barren screaming acres

               wrinkled young bellies 

               open up sorrowful

               ashes flowing livers

               aching finger joints 

                              serve meatless

                              desires of eight kitchens a day

lids full of Ariel—detergent that whitens

               grime of countless laundry loads

               masters haunt for

               soil that feeds (in) rat race—

               burn skin                not soul

Dry hands

               fry fleshless          heavy woks

black hot iron sweat glistens 

                              unapologetically 

               bones hold another pair

               sounds of marbles dropping

                              anklets jingle

                                             no silver

Dancing

trancing                together

                               demanding

                               lusting

submerging                surrendering

               intoxicating

                              fires moving fates

Virodh vidroh vinash

               pyaas rooh jism

               rudan milan cheetkaar

for worldly has the shape of emptiness

               shor                angaar

mold           rift            d r i f t

                                             softly shrieking

               shaking                stretching

                              shredding

six yards of handed down 

                              sari 

                              whirling monsoon winds

               rhythms roar 

                              scorch spirit

               revolting                revoluting

               sound of hell and heaven is vacuum

Bhookh

               ferocious loving

               spreading arms

               legs                heart

               finding in atma

                              utterance denied

love sans knots and stitches

g h a d a r

rang aur jung ka manch

roz-dar-roz

               zindagi bina haare

                              translation                transliteration

                              tarjuma

                                             no italics