TAPE LABELLED DO NOT ARRANGE
by Sushanth Shyamsundar / August 23, 2026 / Poetry / Do not arrange!
© Sushanth Shyamsundar
[00:01:12] a man says this is only research
[00:04:09] a child looks past the camera
[00:07:44] the dog refuses the doorway
[00:12:03] somebody laughs in the wrong room
[00:18:51] the footage cuts
NOTE:
nothing is frightening
until placed
in order
[00:22:10] a festival mask
[00:22:11] a missing sound
[00:22:12] static
[00:22:13] static
[00:22:14] static
[00:22:15] a hand where no hand was
INTERVIEWER:
When did you first feel
something was connected?
ANSWER:
When connection
began feeling
like a trap.
[01:03:00] please stop watching
[01:03:01] please stop arranging
[01:03:02] please stop making meaning
[01:03:03] meaning is how it enters
Sushanth Shyamsundar is an Indian writer and poet whose work explores grief, loneliness, identity, intimacy, horror, and the strange humour of everyday life. His writing journey has taken him across poetry, flash fiction, short stories, performance, and speculative work, with a particular interest in pieces that combine emotional honesty with the surreal or macabre. He is the author of the poetry collection The Opposite of You, The Beginning of Me and is the founder of Rakshasan Media.