In Excess

    By Savita Singh

    I was in excess of this order,
    more than bones
    I was arteries and veins
    desire running through them
    to stay for a little more time
    on this solid earth

    Like grass, half-submerged in water,
    resembling something grass-like
    on the moon;
    it appeared to me in a dream
    I wanted to sway with the wind,
    taking the freshness in;
    Sensing life as mere flesh,
    waiting for the smell of grass
    half -dipped in water,
    happily fragrant

    I was in excess of the order
    that shortens women by half

    Savita Singh is a political theorist and a feminist poet from Delhi. She writes in Hindi and English, and has three collections to her name, Apne Jaisa Jeevan (2001, Rajkamal Prakashan), Neend Thi Aur Raat Thi (2005, Rajkamal Prakashan), Swapna Samay (2013, Rajkamal Prakashan). She has a collection of fifty poems, Nayi Sadi Ke liye Pachas Kavitayen (2012, Vani Prakashan). Her work has been translated into French, a collection of assorted poems, Je Suis La Maison Des Etoiles (Dastaan, 2008). She co-edited an anthology in the world women genre, Seven Leaves, One Autumn (2011, Rajkamal Prakashan). Her poetry has been translated also into German, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch and Catalonian, among others. She has a collection of poems translated into Odia, Jeur rasta mora nijara (2013, Timepass Publication). Savita Singh was awarded the Hindi Academy Award (2017), Raza Foundation Award (2006), Mahadevi Varma Award (2017) and Eunice de Souza Award for poetry 9Languages) (2020). Her poems have appeared in national and international journals, widely. She works in the area of gender studies and has written on Feminist theories of state, economy and literature. She is a professor in the School of Gender and Development Studies, at the Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi.

    Subscribe to our newsletter To Recieve Updates

      The Latest
      • Can I change the deal I have with my periods?

        From shame to strength: redefining my relationship with periods

      • When Did Normal Become the Most Dangerous Word

        "Normal" subtly erases diversity, forcing conformity and quiet exclusion

      • What We Lose When We Love Unequally

        The Failing Math of Emotional Labour

      • The Matchbox by Usawa #10

        North-East Special by Matchbox x The Little Journal of North East India

      You May Also Like
      • Three Poems By Pallavi Padma-Uday

        Pallavi Padma-Uday is a writer, journalist and business historian based in

      • K. Srilata Translations Editor

        Perhaps no other vocation is as misunderstood and, consequently, as de-valued as

      • Night Song (An excerpt from Cast Out and Other Stories)by Sucharita Dutta-Asane

        ‘Raater moton kaalo’ Black as the night Your father welcomed you into the world