The train was moving ever so slowly,
There was still a place for me in it.
The excitement was tremendous, the expectations great
That, I just didn't care to sit.

I reached for the nearest window
To see India and all its glory!
Alas, the first thing I saw was the slums
Every soul living there and its sad story.

As the city went by and fresh air blew past me,
Brightness was promised in the country side
Yet, parched lands and dry lakes were all I saw
I began to wish I wasn't on this ride.

I closed the window and looked around;
The train was overcrowded with people so many
Naked children and worried mothers, all hungry.
Helpless as I was, it caused me great agony.

Suddenly, I was in a long tunnel;
There was complete darkness all around.
Is this the real India, I wondered,
Could its glory be ever again found?

It definitely could be, I reasoned
It's possible if I start to fight.
Join in friends, inaction is our only foe.
Victory's in sight, the tunnel ends in new light.

---Shrinaath Chidambaram