Skip to main content

Ophelia's Mistakes

 


I see people, 

People intoxicated by the pictures and paintings of Ophelia's 

Flowery death. 

Her death image gives them aesthetic pleasure, 

As controlled women always gave them. 

Her hairs afloat, start to sleep on to the water, 

Flowers shrouding her body, 

Eyes open to a world of her own, 

Singing songs of despair.

But little did she realize the danger, 

The danger of clinging on to a hopeless end, 

Like the bough that broke beneath her. 

She was beneath the procrastinated love, 

That demanded her to leave for a nunnery, 

Where she could have grown out of love, 

Leaving a dull yet moving life in her, 

Under the orders of others. 

Little did she understand the fleeting 

Feelings inside men, 

The constant tribulations of mind, 

That demand their essence and 

Drink off the sanity. 

She mistook the words and its soul, 

She made her life revolve around one improper love, 

She didn't realize the wonders in life beyond romantic love, 

Or no one helped her. 

Deaths made her mourn, 

It took over her fragile mind, 

Making garlands of wildflowers, 

Climbing into a willow tree, 

She left her soul in the tree

And made her body floating in the water, 

To be the talk of the country, 

To teach young girls of love and chained lives. 

Yet her silk garments trapped air to stay afloat, 

But her body decided to sink, 

Deep down,

Turning herself an image for

Fighter of dignity, 

And a symbol of women lost in social chains. 

Oh, Ophelia, these are your mistakes. 

A. C

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Of mothers, sarees and their grief

Mothers are often presented as the epitome of love in movies. The struggles, sacrifices and the quiet tiredness they carry are praised, even placed on a pedestal. But we rarely talk about their grief, the grief of unlived lives. Have you ever thought about the lives of these mothers before marriage and motherhood? Before all the giving began? So often, clad in their sarees, mothers cook and smile, clean and laugh. But is that all they ever wanted? Do they carry the weight of the shadows of their unlived lives? Many do, though they may never say it aloud. And they leave it behind for the happiness of the ones they love. I often feel that when they wipe sweat from their brows with the edge of their sarees, they catch the glimpse of their hidden grief. The loneliness and the neglect they receive, they tuck it away, fold it into the pleats of their sarees and smile again. Some may have once wanted to be doctors, teachers, dancers, writers, travellers. And even in their happiest moments, th...

Laapataa Ladies aka Ladies Lost in Patriarchy

Kiran Rao’s “Laapataa Ladies” is a social satire that offers entertainment as well as empowerment. The movie humorously portrays the grave realities of a patriarchal society with the help of a simple story and background. As the name and the trailer suggested, it revolves around two newly married brides who get lost on the way to their in-laws’ home. While Jaya, whom Deepak accidentally brings home instead of his wife Phool, seizes this opportunity to follow her dream, Phool undergoes profound personal growth during the time. This period shows multiple women discovering themselves. Some learn to do things that they love for themselves while others learn to explore and embrace their talents.  Even though Jaya and Phool are two contradictory characters, they are both equally victims of patriarchal conditioning. While Jaya is ready to break and act against all the norms of society from the very beginning by uttering the name of her husband to everyone’s disbelief, Phool learns to do t...

All I Want for Us is to Feel Again

  We were young girls Who used to play at the beach,  Hugging, we watched the sun drowning.  We danced till the candyman went home,  Our skirts swayed with the wind,  Cajoling us to stay a bit longer.  We never thought this picture would fade away.  I know this would never come back,  But I want to feel again.  I want to go back where my heart is.  All I want is to be free and feel again.  The colours and smell still linger with me,  I miss the happiness I felt,  The aches that watered me.  My skin misses the way it felt,  My hair misses the gentle kiss of the beach wind The bookstores and beach waters wait for us,  They send a thousand silent sirens to us,  When will we feel it again?  The recklessness of age,  the courage of freedom,  the music in our brains,  And the limbs that never stopped.  The yellow city lights Gladly kissing the fine roads,  absorbed our shadows,...