What Happened to the Ikan Pari?

What happened to the ikan pari
the one which the chef stole
to present to my friend and I 
    on a plate?

This is their curiosity,
The rosy imagination
that continues
probing, looking for a way
to solve the mystery
a way to catch the thief.

If ikan pari could still be ikan pari
With sambal belacan on its body,
Then couldn't the body of that ikan pari
be found, even covered
with salted duck egg-for example?

And if they found
the chef who cooked
the ikan pari-
who is the true culprit?
And what shall we do about the eaten ikan pari?

Still the gentleman refuses 
to accept the chef's carelessness
and searches for a solution 
without bloodshed.

But now when I gaze 
at the empty frame
of ikan pari on the plate,
I also picture the smiling cheerful face
of the crocodile hunter
  sitting straight up
on a crocodile, covered with black mud,
sticky mud-

Oh, that ikan pari
    whose tail pierced the heart
of Steve Irvin,
he dies, of course, but the others
in his herd, the hundreds 
in his family must remember him.
They swam around him for hours
with their slow graceful movements...
How they turned and turned
in a circle, with their tails
facing outwards and then inwards
toward the heartless ones.

This is a meal,
  a quiet dinner
no one talks about.

Ikan Pari Bakar at Nik Ikan Bakar, Brinchang, CH

Scraping the ikan bakar clean coz it was so good!

Reassembling the bone structure of the ikan pari after scraping it clean ;P

(A parody of  "What Happened To The Elephant?" - 'Point no point'  by Sujata Bhatt

 The actual poem is as below. There is no intention or malice on any part to disrespect 

 or dishonour the literary work of Sujata Bhatt. I only wanted to adapt local culture

 and personal experiences into this poem. Ikan pari is the Malay name for stingray and 

 it is a local delicacy in Malaysia. Nik Ikan Bakar can be found at Brinchang Square,

 39100 Brinchang, Cameron Highlands, Malaysia and the ikan pari bakar is highly recommended)

What Happened To The Elephant?

Sujata Bhatt

What happened to the elephant

the one whose head Shiva stole
to bring his son Ganesh 
    back to life?

This is a child's curiosity,
The rosy imagination
that continues
probing, looking for a way
to believe the fantasy
a way to prolong the story.

If Ganesh could still be Ganesh
With an elephant's head,
Then couldn't the body of that elephant
find another life
with a horse's head-for example?

And if we found
a horse's head to revive
the elephant's body-
who is the true elephant?
And what shall we do about the horse's body?

Still the child refuses 
to accept Shiva's carelessness
and searches for a solution 
without death.

But now when I gaze 
at the framed postcard
of Ganesh on my wall,
I also picture a rotting carcass
of a beheaded elephant
  lying crumpled up
on its side, covered with bird shit,
vulture shit-

Oh, that elephant
    whose head survived
for Ganesh,
he dies, of course, but the others
in his heard, the hundreds 
in his family must have found him.
They stared at him for hours
with their slow swaying sadness...
How they turned and turned
in a circle, with their trunks
facing outwards and then inwards
toward the headless one.

This is a dance,
  a group dance
no one talks about.

          
   ( From 'Point no point'  by Sujata Bhatt)