Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Shagufta Naaz] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see our sphere healing, flowers blooming, Leaves fluttering, stars brighter, thoughts wider, heads lighter. Amidst the chaos, serenity is what I found. This crisis is a blessing in disguise! I can also see... Dreams shattering, Hopes deteriorating, some communities wrapped in dark clouds. For some it's a break but for some it's an outrage. Startled by the cries and the roaring noise, I opened my eyes... when can we really be free? when can we stick our heads out ? when will the dawn arrive? Come on ,let us await that day. And together let's stand strong. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Priyanka Singhal] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see evenings are long The sky is clean The birds chirp & Animals are free The flowers are blooming The rivers are oozing But oh wait.. there I hear the sound of dropping tears A migrant worker is walking back home Hapless, Powerless, He came to city for a shelter home But sadly it could never be his home.. the dream of two meals Twisted into a journey of two hundred miles and no place to reside He waits and waits to reach the vast farmlands Walks and walks to see the distant lands But sadly there is no one to see his plight So one day

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Priyanka Rathi Verma] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see myself having that one cup of afternoon coffee, home alone, overlooking at the high-rises and busy highway from my bedroom window, entertaining my thoughts undisturbed. I see myself dancing to my favourite music playing aloud as I know no one will make fun of my choice of music. I see myself wandering from one room to another admiring how neatly and beautifully everything is arranged unruffled. I see ME being MYSELF. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with “I close my eyes in my self-isolation from Corona... and I see...” Not more

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Ipshita Mitra] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see a reality which is slipping away from my firm grip. I tiptoe down the stairs to reach a closed but not a locked room. I gently push it open and is there a carnival underway, I wonder? Four people are sitting on a stone-cold floor, in a circle; echoes of giggles fill the calm air. I see their gazes fixed on a now-extinct board game. I remember this game, I recognize these four people too – Ma, Baba, my sister and myself. Memories of load-shedding and blackout hit me. Under the flickering candlelight, I see the mischievous glint in my sister’s

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Luma Abbas] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see A huge spectrum of colours smeared across a wall. Slowly, yet fascinatingly the colours fade away. Black and white remain defining the wall. Defining what is finally clear to us What is important and not. The vivid distinction reminding us that things, habits and even days may fade away. Reminding us to slow down. to breathe, to let go, to trust and to simply be good. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with “I close my eyes in my self-isolation from Corona... and I see...” Not more than 100 words. With a horizontal-sized selfie, along with your city

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Bhumika Israni] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see myself staring at a beautiful sunset, the strokes of red and yellow, a haphazardly painted masterpiece. I have a glass of strawberry iced tea in one hand and a slice of barbeque pizza in another. I have nowhere to turn to, it's just me and the sunset. The concept of time ceases to exist. The world plays my favorite music as I sway to the wind and I know that everything will be okay, all my dreams, all my overdramatic ambitions will come true. The world will give second chances and a third and a fourth and everybody will appreciate every

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Hunar Duggal] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see the peril of taking liberties of life we had for granted. Musing over HD Thoreau’s time tested postulate that an efficient laborer will be found sauntering to his task surrounded by wide halo of ease and leisure,only earnest to secure kernels of time and doesn't exaggerate the value of the husk. I affirm it to be quite veritable. I pine for all our routine to revert to the daily struggles and albeit worthless leisures and not just ploughing lonely furrows. Just carelessly sauntering in the woods. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Khushi Mehta] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see a beautiful smile on a rickshaw walla’s face, I see a sense of contentment in farmer’s eyes. I see a balloon hawker holding a bunch of colourful balloon at a beach with his sparkling smile. And, I am holding a balloon in one hand and my favourite cotton candy in other hand sitting right beside my dear husband under a coconut tree, by the beach, and laughing out loud at my husband’s jokes and we both are watching the beautiful waves and breathing the fresh sea air. And as I open my eyes I see the standstill world stuck in one

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Udit Yadav] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see myself hearing a voice... "Do you want to perform with me beloved?" Empty nights, warm evenings and a dense breeze gather at one place "Let's play a drama, let's make you a star, with love the world will grow humane again, and all the rivers will join the mighty sea. Aren't we all that simple memorial?" Hello to a new fashionable life The gray scavengers are idling inside the gray shades. "Don't open your eyes, don't even sneek a peek. Shush, don't trip, the place is not innocent." “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with “I

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Sangeeta Dayma] I close my eyes in self isolation from corona... and I see A canvas hanging on the wall. Which is blank, absolutely blank. I feel the urge to paint it with my bare hands. But, there's something that's pulling me away. And right then, Everything seems to be grey! A wave of melancholy hits my head. I can feel myself drowning into the words of the poetry I wrote sitting beneath my bed. I see dark heavy clouds appearing above my head, trying to water the flower that's already been dead. That's already been dead. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with