As a Tamil woman,
I am fierce in love,
like all Tamil women are –
when they run towards their lovers
with gritted teeth and dancing hair
*
As a Konkani woman,
my laugh will match your fart
— in loudness and vulgarity
*
As a Malayali woman,
my hair is messy, like a dabba joke.
— but if you walk into it with all your heart
you might have a good time
*
As a Kannada woman,
I hug tightly
— and when you wake up next to me
on cold November mornings
like this one
I will hug you with all that I have
— and all that I am yet to have
*
As a Hindi woman
I will open doors and windows
— with the longing of a mother
waiting to escape her life
— with the passion of Chameli
waiting to elope with Charandas.
*
As an English woman
I will make pots and pots of tea
and drink them all up
until my belly swells
and I cannot walk
*
Today I am all these women
and we are walking back home-
arm-in-arm
expertly avoiding all the cows in Basavanagudi.
___