champagne from Veuve Clicquot
china by Doulton clocks by Cartier
sewing machine from Singer
cars from Rolls Royce and Daimler
all crafted on a scale of 1 to12
ah even a library in the finest British tradition
with a miniature book housing a short story
by none other than Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
elementary my friend
working lifts running water electricity
and before i forget the bathroom floor
laid in mother of pearl
1500 craftsmen took 3 years under Lutyens
to complete one woman’s fantasy
while the queen is busy playing
with her imitation dolls living her fantasy
real life dolls scrounge the dustbins
for scraps of food
in the pitiless third world
the queen’s boudoir is replete
with talc and perfume to adorn the body
while the rag picker’s daughter scratches the floor
with her uncut toe nail
pavement as an art house as an open air saloon
it’s the perfect present anybody could get
exclaims the queen while she tests
the fully functional cistern
while the six year old girl with rough beady hair
bares her soul in full public view
the call of nature in natural abundance
the crown of gold versus a tiara of thorns
sometimes life’s ironies its paradoxes
can be cruel
state apartments showcase loot
to awe-struck first world tourists
with fancy camcorders
change of scene
our street girl sleeps in a gutter pipe
shelter she is lucky to have one
many of her sisters found refuge
in seedy brothels
where potbellied whisky sodden middle-aged men
looking for instant nirvana
repeatedly rape a child of her innocence
God save the Queen!
( London 6 July 2003, New Delhi 13 July 2003
)
