Balepet Bangles

the story of my bangles

Whenever we visit a new place -

Be it a temple, a town, or a marketplace.

Mom makes a mandatory stop

To the local bangles shop.

She buys bangles

Of all shapes and colors

She buys them for herself,

She buys them for others.

They look all the same to me.

One could find them anywhere.

‘What’s so special about them?’

I would mock,

As I would wait, while she shopped.

But now I see -

That all the memories of our travels

Have neatly been stacked

Into boxes of bangles.

The red and gold bangles

from Bhubaneswar

Sat next to their green counterparts

from Charminar.

The bangles carried the name

Of the places from where they came.

Every name came with a story

And every story

Came with a memory

As I matched my saree for a date

With blue bangles from Balepet,

I remembered,

How mom and I set to explore

The market streets of Bangalore

I ate jackfruit, mom got blueberries

Our shopping bags were full,

and so were our tummies.

When I go out to parties

Shy and quiet that I am

I hide behind walls,

To avoid exchanging pleasantries.

But when I wear my bangles, I heave

Because I wear my stories up my sleeve

When someone passing by sees

And asks me where I got these,

I tell my tales with such ease!

My glass bangles, gold and green,

They narrate my travels,

They make me feel seen.

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I wrote this poem two years ago when me and my mom accidentally discovered Balepet - the bangle heaven, during our trip to Bangalore. This is one of the poems that’s very close to my heart so I kept it to myself. Sharing it to the world, on the occasion of Mother’s Day.

Cover illustration - done by me.

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