Bypass at eleven

zero sky
blunt melancholy
neons
and billboards
jurassic trucks
waiting shadows
trembling speedometer
bypass
at eleven in the night

science city
culture city
dog's city
crushed dog
dogged love
loving police
police patrol

herr sergeant, would you be the woman of this night?

bypass
at eleven in the night

ruby island
emerald trees
topaz garden
cash and carry
free signal
no breaks
empty malls

there's no madhushala
no insight

bypass
at eleven in the night

then there're dusty trees
and sleeping chai shops
torn kites
and vigilant lamps
fading history
and rising cities
lakhs of citizens
and lakhs of homes
and that ghost
that fight
that solemn mass

let there be light

bypass
at eleven in the night