The following poem by Elvin Lukose from Mumbai was selected as a commendable mention in Wingword Poetry Prize 2020
doors latched shut from the inside
he sits on whatever remains of the toilet seat
at a roadside latrine
smoking his flimsy cigarette
watching the smoke ascend
to irritate the halogen glow
of a bulb that hangs hopelessly
from a leprotic roof
the bucket is filling up to the brim
drop by drop
from the nozzle to the bottom
keeping time
in a suddenly timeless world
he can see the flashes
on the door in front of him
like a movie
the civil barter of warfare
of petrol bombs and molotov cocktails
the only company he has now
are these buzzing flies
fleeing from the clouds
of phosphorus
of gun powder
and ash
he can hear the police
the blaring microphones
the battle cries of the street warriors
the goons
the guardians
and the invisible line between them
he peers out of the window slits
all he can see are
legs running
bodies darting from point to point
some of them interrupted in their tracks
by a gunshot to their belly
only to fall onto a puddle
of their own blood
soon to be motionless
lifeless
he is getting used to the pounding
on the outside and the inside
there is nothing worth watching anymore
his eyes haven't closed since 3 days
there is no dream
there is no sleep
no night
no day
just flashes of amber
and smog from the pyres
he sits back on the toilet seat
staring at the little streams
meandering between patches of moss
on the moist floor
spiraling into the closet
the fetid stench is suffocating
but bearable
at least it doesn't smell
like blood and fire here
the cigarette is shrinking
down to the filter
his last fix
is about to end
his eyes are wearing out
his toes are pruning
from the wetness on the floor
he lies down, curled up, legs to his chest
head to the knees, in his own little womb
he can hear his mother
singing his favorite rhyme
like an angel stroking his weary head
within a tactile memory
he still has two match sticks
and one more cigarette on him
as he holds its crooked body
trembling between his fingers
and buries it back in his pocket
for safekeeping
for future
no matter how long it is
or how short
he will need to stay there
for a few more hours
maybe even days
it looks like it will be awhile.