Sketchbook, Ladies At Forty. A Fatima Naoot Poem In Hindi Urdu Translation Poem by Ravi Kopra

Chalis saal ki umr main
aurtoN k thailay baDay ho jaatay hain
bood pressure ki goliaN rakhne k liay
mishri, kand rakhne k liyay
chashmay k liyay, baareeki lafz paDnay k liyay

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Chalis saal ki umr main
paala unki juraaboN pe lag jaata hai
dheeray dheeray oopar ko aanay lagta hai
aur jab jumay ki shaam ko titliaN ghar choD chali jaati hain
unka dil ek khaali tashtari sa bun jaata hai
vo fir kahan jaati hain?
apna sar kisi pyaari aunti k khanday pe rakhti hain
jo sh-har ki poorav disha main rehti hai.
Chup chao dukhi aurat 6 ratoN tak
apni balcony pe baithi rehti hai
TitlioN k intzaar main rehti hai.

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SKETCHBOOK

At forty
Ladies' bags become bigger
To hold blood-pressure pills and sugars lumps
And spectacles
To improve the eyesight
Making tricky letters
More friendly

In a secret compartment
They keep David's ticket
And a prescription against hiccups
During eclipses
And a candle
As fire burns demons
Who sneak around at night
To cut women's throats
And in the front compartment
A will:
I only possess "Traces of colour",
(It stuck to my hand when two butterflies sat on it) ,
A sketchbook
And a brush
Which I donate
- Like any lonely woman -
To my country.

At forty
Hoarfrost sneaks up on one's stockings
And the heart becomes an empty dish
When butterflies leave the house
On a Friday night.
Where do they go?
They settle on the shoulder of a sweet aunt
In the eastern side of the capital.
Six nights
The silent, sad lady
Sits on the balcony
Waiting for their return.

At forty
A woman says to her neighbour
I have a son
Who does not like to speak
May the Lord give me time
Until he says one morning:
Mother, go!
I am
Fine now.

-Fatima Naoot

-Translation: 2007, Kees Nijland