SS Prasad

S S Prasad, born in 1980, does chip design at Cypress Semiconductor Technology (India) Pvt. Ltd., Bangalore, where he recently integrated some of his poems on silicon, giving them nano dimensions. His first book of poems, 100 Poems, was published this year. His works have appeared in India in The Journal of Indian Writing in English, New Quest, Talking Poetry, Multiple City: Writings on Bangalore and abroad in Fulcrum(USA), The American Scholar(USA), Semicerchio(Italy), Orbis(UK), Komma(Sweden). He received an “Engineering Award” at Cypress for generating an engineering utility with nanoinscriptions (October, 2008). In 2006, he was a winner of The Toto Funds the Arts Award for Creative Writing.

Wedding Album

In this open-top car nuptial procession,

I feel the eyes of Triplicane’s lanes on me.

The car moves slower than men, its headlights

dimmer than the petromax lamps.

I was in the temple, and it took me so long.

I’m sorry.

*

Darling, the umbrella your father gave us

is too large: shade enough for you and me,

our children, too. If it gets blown away by the wind,

I shall run after it, and I would want you

to run after me, our children, after us.

*

Between the mantras, I chant

a love poem in your ears.

The nieces and nephews on our laps

might overhear us, you say.

*

The pundit points

to an invisible star in the sky.

We watch it together,

twin fish merged in one.

*

After prostrating,

we pick from between our hair,

saffron coloured grains.

*

Posing for the group photograph,

we are a one day hero-heroine,

and our many, many relatives, all extras.

*

Make sure we keep this album out of reach

of Chella and Kalyani: when they’re born,

they will look for themselves amidst us and tear it.

*