If they stop and ask you who you are

Give them no reply

Let them search you for your identity

You have none

Free souls do not belong to any religion

Caste, creed, gender- nothing matters

You fly beyond these boundaries

These demarcators of triage, these high-risk zones

If they stop and ask you who you are

Give them no reply

Show them the colour of your blood instead

Ask them if it’s any different from theirs

Or from that shed on the battleground

Ask if they don’t smile on seeing a loved one

Or hope to see their family safe every single day

Just like you do

Ask if they wouldn’t light the world on fire

To avenge the rape of their daughter

Or the murder of their wife

Just like you would

If they stop and ask you who you are

Give them no reply

Not until they tame the demon in their eyes

Not until they burn the bias in their soul

                                                                                            ~ Dr Priyanka Naik

                                                                                                Goa, India