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WELKIN PRIZE 2025 - SHORTLISTED
We are waiting –

by Susmita Bhattacharya

Man waiting on a bench in the dark

for the rain to stop

for our favourite song to play on the radio

for the car to go round the bend

for the driver in the approaching car to open his eyes

for him to swerve the car away from ours

for dad to swear, and save us

for the sound of sirens wailing

for dad to be blue-lighted to hospital

for interventions

for decisions

for answers

​

​

for dad to join us on the other side.

Susmita Bhattacharya is an Indian writer living in Winchester, UK. 'The Normal State of Mind' (Parthian) was longlisted at the Mumbai Film Festival, 2018. Her short story collection, 'Table Manners' (Dahlia Publishing) won the Saboteur Award for Best Short Story Collection and was serialised on BBC Radio 4 Extra. She is co-founder of the ACE-funded ‘Write Beyond Borders Mentoring Programme’ and ‘Bridges not Borders’ project. She is a multidisciplinary artist who does several projects in schools and the community in the Solent region and is currently working on her second novel.

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