FREE VERSE: "RECALIBRATED" BY SOMDATTA MITRA

I did not heal , I recalibrated , 

The wound stayed , but it became a window .  

Like a moth I was learning ,  

as if a map of me was redrawn while I was walking it .  

I'm not who I was , I'm in my instar stage ,  

all appetite , all becoming , no apology .

My wounds were the most honest cartographers ,  

They drew borders of me after the old maps failed .  

Under sublimation I lost the weight , kept the shape ,  

I constructed my new spine from questions, not answers .  

I question the society that why can't I be comfortable in a public bus ?  

Why certain eyes would gaze at me like a wolf studies a limpering deer .

In my office or in a restaurant , in a local train or in a shop ,  

Why the world insists on auditing my right to exist in public ?  

Over earning or over taking decisions , why there are voices ,  

That measure my freedom in inches, and still call it generosity .  

In a bonding with a male friend , why imaginations of the world ,  

build a courtroom around two chairs and call it concern .

In participating in family functions there are seats assigned by duty ,  

not desire and my spine is asked to fold .  

In birthing a girl child there are talk of family extension that snaps shut ,  

And unspoken math for another try .  

At each choice I make ,  

my self-possession is caged by a society

where my own gender won’t stand beside me .  

Instead , through jealousy unseen ,  

my progress is forced to its knees  

beneath someone’s vanity ,  

beneath narcissistic, nasty hands .  

I am a contestant today

rather than a person of my own .  

At every doorstep ,  

the price of entry is pleasing .  

The currency is my consent .  

And I'm dead against this malpractice .  

I constructed my new spine . And I keep it .

© Somdatta Mitra

- India 

28.05.2026

RECALIBRATED by Somdatta Mitra is a powerful poem about personal transformation, resilience, and the struggles women face in society. The speaker explains that she did not simply heal from her pain but used it as a source of growth and self-discovery. Through her experiences, she develops a stronger sense of identity and learns to rebuild herself.

The poem also highlights various forms of gender discrimination, including public scrutiny, restrictions on women's freedom, workplace bias, social judgment, and family expectations. The speaker questions why women must constantly prove their worth and endure unfair treatment from society.

Ultimately, the poem is a declaration of strength and self-possession. Despite the obstacles and pressures placed upon her, the speaker refuses to surrender her independence and dignity. She emerges stronger, determined to stand firm against injustice and live on her own terms.