26, Kamala Nehru Ridge, Civil Lines, Delhi

26, Kamala Nehru Ridge, Civil Lines, Delhi is my first verse novel and my second book of poetry. It is set in pre-independence India, beginning in 1937, from a time before partition was officially announced, to 1947, a time when the face of Delhi had drastically changed; its demography and lines of divide. Each verse is written for Zara, a young Muslim girl, born in a small affluent muslim Mallik family in Kamala Nagar, her land, her home, her family, her marriage to a Hindu man, her journey to keep her family where they belonged, Civil Lines, Delhi, India. Despite its crumble and fall. Over the 40 verses of this book, I've tried to use the grace and flow of poetry, verse and dance to transport you through politically, culturally and economically changing tides and times in India and beyond.