From the Editor’s PC – Yashasvini Verma
Some parts of the write-up below are fiction, and others are not. You can decide. Friday, 3:04 AM The first thing I register as I open my eyes is that my project work is not on the screen. Sure, there’s…
To Be in Love with Everything – Adya Chauhan
Seasonal feelings. Sundry skies upon me, There is warmth in my chest. My shadows are resting, The sun is soothing for once And my ghosts allow me to dream this time. I wonder, I wonder If I’ll curdle again this…
December for a Schoolgirl in Delhi – Aliyah Banerjee
December for a Schoolgirl in Delhi is when the city that never sleeps is suddenly lulled into a slumber so deep, that no lullaby must be sung, no dust must enter her nostrils, no worries must penetrate her dreams.…
A Place in My Mind’s Maze – Ishita Gupta
I walk down the cobbled pathway, my head down. For a reason unbeknownst, I always felt comfortable walking with my head down. Not from shame, or guilt. No. I just felt better like that. I just did. The cobbled pathway has changed,…
We Need to Talk About Periods – Stuti
Just a few days ago, a friend and I were talking. In our long conversation, we didn’t just procrastinate on completing our English project; we also ended up talking about periods. As one does. It wasn’t a “God, periods suck.…
Tunes of Black and White – Ishani Singh
As the fingers land on the keys And allow the melodies to seize A sense of escape palpates From all the melancholy that lays With each note plunked A chunk of solace is pumped From the treble clef to…
An Unwanted Adventure – Vaagisha Kanwar
It is often believed that walls have ears and Cordelia would receive a shocking reminder of this later in the day. The day started plain and uneventful, even more so than the past few days which had been as exciting as a…
The Siren’s Song – Tanvi Jain
Perched on a bed of rock Surrounded by the gushing sea A siren, exquisite and bewitching Beckons sailors silently Then she opens her mouth to sing A golden, dream-woven melody Desires, deep and dark Want, from the…
Under the Microscope: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo – Parvathy Chaithanya
Content/Trigger Warning: Some part of this piece deals with a plotline that deals with suicide. Reader’s discretion is advised. “I’m under absolutely no obligation to make sense to you.” – Taylor Jenkins Reid, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo…
The Beauty of Monotony – Samiksha Dubey
I sit here staring at this box of a room, a cage rather, all alone. Secluded from the usual bustle, which is probably proceeding without me, miles away. The white walls around me, which were left blank to create the…
Just Outside of Nebraska – Avni Jain
In the diner, We were all alone. Looking at each other From the far side of the table. The red color walls, And the black and white tiles; Radio songs and The background noise. In a small, tiny…
Myrtle – Saara Mathur
Myrtle here, is a friend of mine, The truest friend indeed, She helps me when I’m feeling sad, She holds me when I weep. Myrtle never lies to me, Myrtle always tells the truth, She never hurts me and trusts…
Venere Vulgare, Venere Celeste – Vasudha Sharma
The female body has been the unfortunate subject of the unabashed male gaze which was encouraged by the age-old institution, patriarchy. Sigmund Freud’s dichotomy, ‘The Madonna-Whore Complex’ is an accurate summary of the two lenses through which women are perceived,…
Bittersweet (Anadiplosis) – Vrinda Rastogi
If I knew Knew wherever I stood I stood prosperous Prosperous a cafe I would create Create to create You’ll find it filled Filled with hot desserts topped Topped with chilled ice cream Cream of the crop just for…
Get Up and Go Again: The Biggest Lesson Sport Has Taught Me – Yashasvini Verma
It’s nothing new to hear if you’re a sportsperson, a coach, a journalist, a fan— really anyone who has any connection to or interest in the sports industry. It’s what is said after a bad team loss or an individual…
Waking Nightmares – Anjali Bansal
Lying on the blood-soaked ground, rasping breaths surrounded her. Her own echoed as she shut her eyes, marking her alive among the dead piling high. The war drums still sounded in her head, the horror of her sword cutting off…
Rosemary or Thyme? – Tanvi Kamra
“It’s comforting to know that there is one relationship I’ll hold on to for life.” Rosemary? Or is that Thyme? My feet lead up to the stove. I hold my hair back, take a big sniff, And roll my…
Ivory Loneliness – Mira Sehgal
Creaky stairs and aphonic dreams Besiege me as I caress countless spines My fingertips touching limitless sequences, arrangements That somehow make sense. The eld reeks across the room– A faint biblichor settling over me Feels like a daydream But I…
The Candle of Night – Advaita Tyagi
In the tranquil, black night She sat in solitude with twinkling eyes, The music had ceased The people were gone Her dazzling crimson brilliance had been reduced to a faint blush. The streets were vacant devoid of life, but she…
Survivor on the Run – Suvangana Aulyaman
Stood back Took a closer look And realized life was on loop. Moments were broken Feelings wide apart I was racing. Fantasized life to be a competition Thrusting others to fall Vanquishing as a sore loser I had lost Lost…
Experience – Katyani Jairath
We all ‘experience’, even a newborn has, but isn’t called experienced. If your past is your memory, are experiences your past? Everything I do adds onto my experience, everything I do limits my experience to that doing. When I feel general anxiety thinking about the future, then I remind myself of my experiences, the past. I take the general comfort that is offered and that comfort is depicted in this piece. When I’ll be 40, nothing new may come my way, nothing that’ll surprise me because I would’ve converted my past into experience. A pocket-sized past, pocket-sized experience with me to help me understand whatever is to come. I’ll explain the new through the old. I’ll look in the mirror and take even comfort into knowing that my marks and wrinkles are engraved experiences, that everything I’ve ever done has led me here; every breath, meal, all words I’ve spoken, the pen I chose to buy, the way I sat, the colours I put in this piece: all led me to this second and life wasn’t wasted.
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Dancing Away – Ishita Gupta
Swaying her body along the tune looking godly an artist’s muse. Beneath her feet a splintered floor in sweet dreams a velvet door. Breaking inside feeling insane shaking outside to soothe the pain. Postures sliding fluidly to another worries enveloping…
Hush – Vaagisha Kanwar
hush, don’t let little Ana hear, the harsh words that exchange between the pair who call each other dear it’s your voices, your mistakes; but she feels the guilt the banging doors, the separate beds, the glass that breaks is…
In the Land Where the Woman Toils – Aliyah Banerjee
Content Warning: The piece below deals with marital rape. Please proceed with due discretion. the man is on strike. 99 hashtags shared. 99 necklaces and the man marries. 99 irritations and the man walks out. 99 becomes 100. the woman…
What Connects us? – Avni Jain
The Stranger who Paddles to the Sea, Says ‘Goodnight, Moon’ in joy and glee He asks the Three Questions straight Out of my Mind The only difference is his corduroy shorts and my clothes are fully designed. Even on a…
A Casket of Memories
“I’m here,” Nina whispered to the gentle sea breeze, hoping it would carry her words to the places she couldn’t herself go. Leaving a small trail along the seafoam studded shore, her bare steps sunk into the wet sand, reflecting…
Six Feet Under – Aadya Handa
We made a forever promise, under the blossom tree Weren’t ready for the storm we couldn’t foresee Spent ages without love, spent days dreaming of you So unfortunate to find peace, and be parted so soon My fantasies…
Icarus From the Ashes – Vrinda Rastogi
I take flight Once again Like Icarus Abscond from my chains With my wings of wax and feather And euphoria through my veins My lungs swell with the wind That I let carry me away I soar high…
(Un)fulfilled Expectations – Aanya Singh
I was told that the past was gone, not the chance. I could still prove myself. I was told that the trust was lost, not my potential. I could still redeem myself. I tried and tried till I cried,…
My Encounters with Death – Sara Maheshwari
Content Warning: The following short piece deals with content related to death. This is a story about my encounters with death. You read that right. Often, we sit over coffee together. No, it hasn’t visited me with an invitation to…
All in a Lifetime – Avni Jain
What separates us? Do you think it is our words that play a monopoly over us? Or is it the bestrewed silence that lurks in our conversations? Your face, your voice, your smell, your presence, all of it incessantly flashes…
Renaissance – Vrinda Rastogi
Can you hear me? I’ve been trying To speak to you Revive you I am relinquishing The person I used to be Metamorphosing Into a better me I’m trying to hold on to you Pull you closer Make…
A Lone Drop – Ishita Gupta
A lone drop waltzing its way through the dark claustrophobic tunnel mindless about what lies ahead. Feet on relevé dangling in air relishing a few seconds of freedom awaiting its fateful end. One girl laughing heartily oblivious to the drop’s…
What Happens When You Die – Stuti
Content Warning: This short piece talks about things related to death. what happens when you die? not of the body, but the soul what happens when you die? not of the people, but the regret what happens when you die?…
You Should Know – Oorvi Gupta
You are the wind in your hair, the silly dance you do when you don’t care, You are the places to which you fly, you are the morning cup of coffee under a happy sunny sky, You are the pages…