Uttarayan

The sky feels kinder today, more wide,
As if the blue has nothing left to hide.
The sun returns without a spoken plan,
Just warming roofs wherever shadows ran.

Terraces wake with colour, thread, and cheer,
Old shouts of joy return this time of year.
Lines cross the air in playful, tangled sight,
Win or lose, the joy remains just right.

Winter loosens its familiar hold,
The afternoon grows brave, the light turns gold.
Shadows soften, learning how to stay,
As daylight gently lengthens out the day.

Hands pass sweetness, dark and bright,
Sesame and jaggery held just right.
Bitter turns tender, warmed and slow,
As shared delight begins to glow.

This is Makar Sankranti’s quieter turn,
The day the sun enters Capricorn.
Not chasing dark, not forcing flame,
Just warmth arriving, free of name.

Fires glow. The harvest breathes with ease.
Old smoke lifts slowly through the trees.
Uttarayan asks for nothing more—
Just light
that stays
a little longer
than before.

Written by Juilee Parag Parkhi