Ranu Uniyal (India) is Professor of English at University of Lucknow. An author of six books, her articles and book reviews have been published widely. Her poetry has appeared in many magazines including Mascara Literary Review (Australia), Jaggery, Medulla Review, Sketch Book, Setu, Twenty 20, Whispers (USA), Littlewood Press (UK). She has published three poetry collections: Across the Divide (2006), December Poems (2012) and the most recent The Day We Went Strawberry Picking in Scarborough (2018).
English
Lucknow
As I return from my voyage
the streets of my city carry a tangy flavour
Each leaf, each gust of air
smells with a renewed vigour
and every smile redolent with relief
now that home is here
no inquest
nor an urgency
the name of my city is relief,
perhaps.
Translated to English by the poet
लखनऊ
लौट कर आते हैं जब भी
सफर से हम
अपने शहर की गलियां
और भी नमकीन लगने लगती हैं
हर पत्ता हर हवा का झोंका
पुरजोशी से महकता है
और हर मुस्कराहट इस
अहसास से भरपूर लगती है कि
घर आ गया अब कोई तफ़्तीश नहीं
कोई अर्जेन्सी नहीं
मेरे शहर का असली नाम ही सुकून है शायद।