In the Bazaars of Hyderabad...by Sarojini Naidu

ABOUT THE POET:

Well, I guess the 'nightingale of India', Sarojini Naidu needs a very less introduction to a large part of the audience. However, for many else:

  

Wikipedia states thus:

'She was also a noted poet. Her poetry includes children's poems, nature poems, patriotic poems and poems of love and death...'

THE POEM

What do you sell, O merchants?

Richly your wares are displayed.

Turbans of crimson and silver,

Tunics of purple brocade,

Mirrors with panels of amber,

Daggers with handles of jade.

What do you weigh, O ye vendors?

Saffron, lentil and rice.

What do you grind, O ye maidens?

Sandalwood, henna and spice.

What do you call, O ye pedlars?

Chessmen and ivory dice.

What do you make, O ye goldsmiths?

Wristlet and anklet and ring,

Bells for the feet of blue pigeons,

Frail as a dragon-fly's wing,

Girdles of gold for the dancers,

Scabbards of gold for the kings.

What do you cry, O fruitmen?

Citron, pomegranate and plum.

What do you play, O ye musicians?

Sitar, Sarangi and drum.

What do you chant, O magicians?

Spells for the aeons to come.

What do you weave, O ye flower-girls?

With tassels of azure and red?

Crowns for the brow of a bridegroom,

Chaplets to garland his bed,

Sheets of white blossoms new-garnered

To perfume the sleep of the dead.

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The New York Times review the poem in the edition of 27 April 1913 and wrote that; "To us of a colder, soberer clime the very name of this singer of "the oldest land" brings a suggestion of color and perfume, of strange twilight's, of all the mystery and magic and swift bestowals of life and death that we traditionally associate with India. We are not altogether disappointed, for "The Bird of Time" contains much beautiful verse. "In the Bazaars of Hyderabad" shines like an oriental gem"...