By Akshita Sharma
When the sun turns a lovely ochre and begins to retire
and the sky picks up a handsome copper colour,
you see me, winding in your view-
skin an opulent wheat and dusk,
tresses the colour of ebony neatly braided around motia jasmines
with brass ghungroos pegged steadfastly on my tender ankles,
rouge on my cheeks and kohl rimmed eyes
and I have my hands purling during Alarippu,
let me know my first misstep.
Watch my glass bangles clinking,
my aalta- stained palms plummeting down my hips
like the Kaveri plunging down the Anamudi
as I perform the sringaar rasa, donning my jewellery piece by piece
and cross my hands in a delicate ‘mayurakhya’
so that you can smell the sandalwood on my wrists,
watch my form, my tone,
let me know where I misspoke.
I wait, with the clemency of a crimson rose on the nape of my neck,
for him to return from battle,
with brimming eyes- nervous, but kind-
birthing fear and courage at the same time,
and despite this, for all that matters, in my painful anticipation,
you read my mood, my message, the bronze in my eyes,
and I, for the umpteenth time,
misspeak, mispronounce my love
in roudra instead of karuna
and both of us, purling our hands in ardhachandrasya,
come nightfall,
you my Nataraja, and I, your Sati,
have conversations we would have missed otherwise,
of beauty, devotion, fondness
in a language mispronounced, reading each other like literature
in our vernacular, until day breaks again.
FOOTNOTES
Alarippu: traditionally the first dance piece that Bharatnatyam dancers learn and perform in a recital
Sringaar rasa:it is one of the nine rasa and translates to romantic love, attraction or beauty
Mayurakhya: it is a hand gesture or mudra that depicts a peacock
Roudra:it is one of the nine rasa and translates to anger
Karuna:it is one of the nine rasas and translates to kindness
Ardhachandrasya:it is a hand gesture or mudra that depicts half moon.