P K N Panicker

Mail to a friend

PKN Panicker: Slant of Light

Book Review

M Mohankumar

Slant of Light

Anthology of Poetry

Thiruvananthapuram: Folio Publishers-Distributers. 2011

Pages: 85. Price: Rs 160

Relaxed and philosophical

M Mohankumar is a familiar name in contemporary Indian English Poetry. This is his seventh book of poems, others being Pearl Diver (1988), Half Opened Door (2000), Nightmares and Daydreams (2002), The Moon Has Two Faces (2004), The Diwan’s Discomfiture and Other Poems (2007) and Late Rains (2009). Mohankumar retired as Chief Secretary, Government of Kerala, and lives at Thiruvananthapuram.

M Mohankumar’s Slant of Light is a collection of 77 poems, his seventh. I had occasion to place a review on his earlier anthology Late Rains in Muse India (Vol. No.34, Nov-Dec 2010). I am extremely happy to see that the poems in this one show a much greater degree of maturity in thought and consequently less sentimentality. Whereas Late Rains reflect an agony, almost of a personal nature that could be discerned not only in the lines he wrote but also in between, left unwritten, the poems in this collection are reflective of a comparatively relaxed, lighter mood and more philosophical. Mohankumar is geared up to have a relook at the world and adapt himself to the changed realities.

Let us take these old bells down.

They have been ringing the same old way

for centuries, oblivious of changed times......

Let us take these old bells down, melt them

and mould them into new bells, new bells

to produce music pleasing to gods,

whom we have installed in our hearts.

    (Let Us Take Theses Old Bells Down, p 85)

His observation in the first poem in this book is evocative.

Life triumphs in the midst of suffering death.

    (Palimpsest, p 11)

He is witness to the fall of butterflies to the ground with broken wings. For him every hope about tomorrow is a butterfly that -

soars and soars

till the cross-wind

blows it off its course.

    (Hope is a butterfly, p 12)

Mohankumar turns extremely sarcastic when portraying certain incidents that hurt his sensitivities – happenings in his backdoor (Thiruvananthapuram) when the famous Malayalam poet A Ayyappan died on the footpath on October 21, 2010 and the goof-up by the Kerala government in organising his last rites. I do not wish to go into the details, but the following lines etch an un-erasable picture in our minds.

They have put him in cold storage,

and have got busy with other things.

Surely they will give him a fitting funeral

as soon as they can spare the time......

Peace after a long struggle;

quiet after a frenetic life.

Silent and helpless, he waits.

Icy fingers bite into his flesh

    (Cold Storage, p 15)

Everything that could be said of the poet, his admirers, nature and depth of his bonding between them and the goof-up - everything that needs to be told, is neatly and precisely narrated in those 22 lines. Nothing is left untold. Those icy fingers bite not only into his flesh but also into the consciousness of the inept in the government – sarcasm at its best. He continues:

On a flower bedecked platform

lies the dead poet, draped in white,

peace on his face, eyes slightly open.

There is a touch of smile on his lips,

As though he is watching the whole

‘charade’ with mild disdain.

    (Death of a Poet, p 60)

Through ‘Design’ (p 16), ‘Razing the House’ (p 17), ‘Rite of Passage’ (p 18), ‘The River’ (p 19) and ‘Cries and Rattles’ (p 20), the poet travels through the routines of life and explores the meaning and depth of relationships, the demolished hopes and frustrations, the ecstasy of growing up and the blossoming of life that reveals her tender charms, shyly, to the lover’s gaze. He would not mind sparing a few lines to look at what could happen after ‘departing from this world’. How did everything begin with? With a bang? But why bother about all that?

Did the universe begin with a bang? ......

Far-off events. They don’t bother us,

earth-bound mortals that we are.

What bothers us is closer home:

    (Cries and Rattles, p 20)

Even as the poet turns philosophical, he looks to the real world around him with a profound submission:

We have come all the way.

When you lead, I cannot resist.

    (Rendezvous, p 21)

But Mohankumar is not one who would lean back on the chair and while away the time. His mind is full of questions. He is not inclined to leave even the great Buddha without throwing an inconvenient one at him – and relevant too.

the Buddha spoke of death.

The body, he said, falls apart

like a worn-out cart.

What of the brand-new carts,

and carts that are sturdy,

that get smashed

and fall apart?’

    (Falling Apart, p 22);

and in ‘Tremor’ (p 22) he concludes that the way of the world is such that ‘as we rub our blurred eyes we could see our future reduced to hazy heaps of ruins.’ Even though ‘we board with hopes of a bon voyage, seldom are we in command’ (The Voyage, p 23). ‘The Night Train’ (p 31) is yet another example of the sharpness with which he approaches a subject and the force that he puts in every word that he uses. Except for his penchant to associate the darker side of life with night, it could equally have been a day train as well.

In the silence of the deep night,

I often hear it hurtling past,

faster than a bullet train.

Sometimes, it stops by.

(I would hear the creak of brakes.)

Then it carries a neighbour away.

One night it will stop at my gate.

And then I will sleep-walk

into this long-distance train.

    (The Night Train, p 131)

His affinity and love for nature could be measured in his nostalgic narratives of the green that was around him in his younger days. He finds time to look back at ‘The Album’ (p 42) and reminisce the good old days.

In those far-off days, when I was a child,

people in the village lived in houses

thatched annually with palmyrah fronds.

The trees grew everywhere, on vacant

lands, on the ridges of the paddy fields,

straight into the sky, dark and gaunt,......

Versatile leaves; sweet, fleshy fruits;

refreshing toddy, the sturdy trunk itself-

these were their generous gifts to us...

In the dead of the night I could hear

the whining of the palmyrah trees-

till they disappeared one by one.

    (Palmyrah Trees: An Old Man’s Tale, p 34)

As a child, he would often see

flowers glimmering in the evening sky,

strewn over Heaven’s blue, polished floor -

mandara, parijata…

    (Flowers in the Sky, p 37)

His subtle humour is equally pleasing.

I remember certain poets

whose imagination flies so high,

and never touches the earth,

not even once.

    (Rare Bird, p 63)

Modern hanging is a fine art.

So say the experts.

They should know.’

    (Modern Hanging, p 70)

Mohankumar defines poetry in his own way (p 26). Maturity of thought, wisdom born out of long experience, his grip on the craft as reflected in the choice of words, control on emotions and reigning of sentiments, subtle humour and avoidance of unnecessary embellishments are the hall-mark of every poem in this anthology. What I have attempted is to merely pick up a few ‘unwritten words and unspoken thoughts’ between the lines and in the space encapsulating the written ones, leaving the rest to poetry lovers and critiques to pick up.

This space

around the poem

and between its lines

is not empty.

It is filled with

unwritten words

of unspoken thoughts.

    (The Space Around the Poem, p 26)

END

ROOMS

 

Emotions that emanate from deep within a person, articulated as intertwined, well arranged, structured word to word combinations, dynamic and vibrant in their content and emotive aspect forms the essence of good poetry. Emotions from deep within are often reflective of the rich, varied and vast experience of a person, acquired over a period of time and from personal involvement in some form or other. The poems of Boutha Ayyanaar are without doubt, from deep within his heart and hence on reading are able to instantaneously resonate with his fellow humans placed in near identical situations. Mansion Kavidhagal, first published in 2005 bears excellent testimony to Ayyanaar’s sensitivity to contemporary realities, expressed at times in veiled biting sarcasm.   

 

 ‘The moment I stepped inside the city

  the first thing that came into view

  were the horns of men.’

                                                           (Horns p.16)

Living in the prison like rooms of the Mansion, loneliness, slowly and steadily eats into his very being and like most others placed in his position would, the poet tends to be philosophical.

 

              ‘Not knowing which face you like

               and which one I like,

               yet, we keep living

               in love. Don’t we?’

                                                                        (Love p.21)

The poet tries to find new dimensions to love – especially as he is burning and melting under the pangs of separation. The poet, without doubt, is in deep love with his past, his village, the village life, his home, his wife and pines to be back. The city really is not in his heart, though as he confesses elsewhere, he has nothing against it.

             

                ‘Chased by memories

                 pained by the sorrow of migration

                 The heart covers its face

                 in anguish untold.’  

                                                                          (Please Let Go My Hands p.23)

See the exactness of his analysis of the characteristics of the city.

 

                ‘In the solitary room

                 the fan

                 scatters fear

                 everywhere.’  

                                           (The Entire City Is Reeling Under The Grip of Fear p.24) 

The city and the mansion of course do not recognize nor do get familiar with any particular face. In the dingy room of the mansion the poet is alone, except for the room as his companion in spite of the fact that he is in the very centre of the crowded city.

 

                ‘The room and myself

                 keep waiting

                 for a familiar face.’

                                           (The Entire City Is Reeling Under The Grip of Fear p.26)

 

No, that is not totally true –he does have other companions to converse with. Look at his companions with who he converses – the tube-light, the fan, the pillow, the door, the worn-out mirror, dirty clothes. He comforts himself in the fact that his room is a sincere trust worthy friend, with who he can confidently share his secrets.

 

                  ‘We share so many a secret

                   My room which has never told nothing to none

                   is definitely better than my friend.’

                                                                                          (You and I p.30)

The room is definitely better than the friends who betray.

 

The poet also has a definite sense of humour which surfaces occasionally, may be even without any conscious effort from him.

 

                   ‘Even my daughter who is

                     just three years old

                     calls me “Mottai’

                     When asked to show respect

                     she says ‘Mottai Sir’.

                                                                                       (Appearance p.71)

 

As I jot down these lines purported to be a critical appreciation of Ayyanaar’s poems, I should confess that I am doing so without accessing and reading his original work in Tamil. No doubt that every language has its distinct unique beauty and it is rather difficult to have the beauty one transfixed into another in its totality –especially so from such a rich and vibrant language that Tamil is. As such I can only presume that the original will be much more powerful in its semantic and emotive content and reflective of the poet’s rich Tamil cultural mooring.

 

A word about the rendering in English is considered not out of place. Latha Ramakrishnan has more than 25 books translated and published and all are well received and appreciated by the readers. She has done full justice in this instance also. However let us not forget that an expression which is exquisitely pleasing in one language when translated into another may lose its charm. This is all the more so, as the translator herself has stated, ‘in the case of Neo-Tamil poems when the poems are rich and complex with the element of obscurity and multiple meaning’. Having said this, I cannot but observe that her attempt to be as sincere as possible to the original text, at times seems to force her to sacrifice the beauty and expressive exactitude unique to English language. I only wish that a well established translator of the caliber of Latha Ramakrishnan could take a little more liberty to deviate where found necessary and without having to jar the beauty of English.

 

Prabanjan’s forward is very good and brings forth the essence of Ayyanaar’s poems with all the force and vigour that it deserves.

 

Ayyanaar’s ‘Rooms’ is excellent reading material and is a fine example of neo-Tamil poetry of the 1990s, rich in imagery, vibrant with raw life experience at its best.

 

                                                                                                      P.K.N.Panicker. 

ROOMS  by Boutha Ayyanar, Translated by Latha Ramakrishnan, Published by Meenal Publishing House, 3/363, Bajana Kovil Street, Chennai -603103. Published in Chennai Chronicle, Vol.1, issue 2, May 2010  

 

Excerpts from Leela Narendran’s welcome address on the 143^rd School day

On behalf of the National Boys’& Girls’ Education Society and our Lady Sivaswami School, I extend a hearty welcome to each & everyone present here to celebrate our 144^th School day. A very special welcome to our chief guest Honourable Justice K.Chandru.  Our president Sri.T.R.Mani will  tell more about Justice K.Chandu. Nevertheless, I want to share with you briefly about our friend, and to be more specific about my family friend Chandru. He was a welcome visitor to our house during his college days in Vivekananda College. Our two sons nick named as ‘mischief mountains’ by the neighbours used to wait for him & listen to his talks as if mesmerised. We were watching his subsequent career as a Student of Law, as a practicing lawyer and later as Justice Chandru. As an advocate, he appeared for a number of human rights cases, cases relating to Press Freedom etc. He consistently championed the cause of the under privileged. He always had a point of view, a little different from the conventional, that concealed a rebel within him. My husband and I used to eagerly go through his judgements and often subject them to critical analysis and are amazed to agree that he continues to be the rebel with a cause. Immediately on becoming the Judge, he did away with the colonial mace carrying practice and notified that advocates are not to address him as ‘my lord’. In other words he proved himself that he is one among us & no different even when holding a high judicial office. His judgements, I felt always reflected the common man’s simple logic of natural justice – always clear, definite & in easily understandable language, reflecting the socio-economic ground realities as felt & experience by the common man  - and with a human touch. I am happy that, but for the stature & wisdom gathered Justice Chandru is no way deferent from that young college student Chandru, I knew.

Our School born in 1869, grew out of the firm conviction of many of our enlightened citizens of yester years with foresight, to impart education to girls irrespective of social, economic, religious and caste  barriers. Even after a long 14 decades, we take pride that we continue in the same tradition and our motto remains ‘empowerment of the girl child through education’. To be a little frank we do not negate admission to students even on their academic deficiencies. We admit every child who seek admission. We strongly believe that for a comprehensive development of the human personality & to equip the growing children to face the challenges of present day life, class room education alone is not adequate. Hence our school activities are oriented to give the students, training in various fields of interest leading to total personality development as could be understood from the report that will be presented by our HM. Smt. Ruby Puthotta.

In spite of various constraints we face, we achieve good academic results in the Board Exams – this year we achieved 95% results both in X and XII grades. Credit goes without doubt to the devoted services of our teaching & non-teaching staff. 

LNG - User's Conference

LNG  - User's Conference -organised by Chemical Industries Association (India) on 20th July 2012 

Excerpts from the Welcome Address by the President - P.K.N.Panicker  

 As I stand before you, I am reminded of the days, almost 3 decades back, when this Association was advocating the establishment of a merchant Naphtha Cracker in Tamilnadu, An Ethylene handling facility at the Ennore Port, Laying of Petroleum product pipelines connecting major towns in Tamilnadu and extending to Kochi and a Southern Gas Grid. Things did not happen the way we wished and Tamilnadu, because of wrong policy decisions, lost the advantage of having established many pioneering chemical manufacturing facilities in the early days, a foundation on which the state and perhaps the south as a whole could have built a flourishing chemical and bulk drug sector. Growth of the chemical sector in the state and perhaps in the whole of south got stalled and continues to be a story of missed opportunities; and the story repeats again and again - not in Tamilnadu alone but in the whole country. Even so we can be happy and proud that this country has a wonderful capacity to sustain; go along in spite of everything that goes wrong time and again.

It was only a couple of weeks back that the PCPIR (Petroleum Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region) project in Tamilnadu obtained Cabinet nod. This, without doubt, is welcome news. The six million tons per annum refinery project (to be expanded to 9 m.tons) of Nagarjuna Oil Corporation jointly with TIDCO at a total cost of Rs.9,600.crores will form part of the PCPIR. NOCL plans to set up facilities for production of xylene, PTA and recovery of propylene.The total investment planned in the PCPIR is Rs.92,160.crores. Another project slated to be part of this PCPIR is the integrated 15 million tons per annum refinery cum petrochemical complex of CPCL. It will have a grass root refinery along with an ethylene cracker and down stream units for aromatic derivatives and paraxylene with an envisaged of Rs.40,000. Crores. 

LNG import terminal at Ennore Port by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd with storage and regasification facilities of 5million tpa capacity, according to the company's Chairman, Mr R.S. Butola, is estimated to cost 4,320 crore. TIDCO partners this project.  In addition,  The Indian Oil Petronas Pvt. Ltd is setting up an LPG import-export terminal at Ennore Port with tankage capacity of 30,600 tonnes to be completed by March 2016 and the LPG terminal by August 2012 is estimated to cost 498 crore.  These projects together with the LNG terminal at Kochi can redraw the face of the Chemical Industry sector in Southern India - and the Energy sector too. We welcome these developments and this seminar with this backdrop is organised to have a frank exchange of views among technologists and potential stake holders as to how the newly created facilities can be best used.   

We are really overwhelmed by the response from leading corporate houses involved in the field – more than 30 distinguished delegates representing almost all leading stake holders.    

This country, based on a conventional understanding, is highly deficit in energy resources; Any meaningful improvement in the material living standards of our people is possible only with substantial increase in power generation. Our per capita power consumption is just around 780 units per annum in comparison with 1200 in SriLanka, 2230 in Brazil, 2470 in China 13000 in USA and even more in other developed countries.  Social inclusion is possible only when the tediousness of manual jobs is reduced. Let us not take the freebie culture  ushered in by the political leadership in the country lightly. It has a social message that can be understood if we remember that the free country of which Poet Subramaniya Bharati dreamed had grinding machines and washing machines as essential components in it. And this is what made Bill gates tell that poverty is, more a social mind set than economic.  This is what makes increased power generation highly relevant. Naturally we have to look at all possible resources within the country and even outside. Thorium based nuclear energy is one such and being actively advocated by our former President Dr. Abdulkalam. Solar, wind, Bio including Algae are potential candidates but the gestation period to make them really viable and dependable is going to be long. The other resource that we can immediately look at is Natural gas. Though our own finds are not that great to give us comfort, resources elsewhere is large enough to give us hope, subject to our being able to evolve the correct strategies and relationship with other countries rich in Natural gas.  

Look at what is happening in the United States.  The whole nation seems to be celebrating the rich shale gas find, and is optimistic and enthusiastic about a rebound of their otherwise  battered economy. With economical shale gas development in the oil and gas industries  U.S. is ramping up with more than 1,400 oil and natural gas midstream and upstream projects supported by $163 billion or more in investments. Chris Witte of BASF's Freeport complex stated that Texas alone is home to 12 or more planned chemical-facility projects, including an expansion of Dow Chemical's Freeport complex, marking the biggest industry growth in the state since the 1980s. The concern for some companies is finding enough skilled workers. US Energy Department forecasts that the share of gas in  power generation will increase to 27 percent in 2035 from 24 percent in 2010 and that the U.S. may become a net exporter of liquefied natural gas in 2016 – that is in another four years from now. U.S. LNG exports may start with a capacity of 1.1 billion cubic feet a day in 2016 and to be doubled by 2019. Other gas rich countries are also looking at the possibility of exporting gas and obviously large oil importers like India are eagerly awaited markets. These developments will seriously impact international oil prices and in all probability, being a substantial importer of oil, in our favour.  

If this be the case, what are we waiting for? Our own reserves are not being utilised the way we ought to. Even the expected production from Reliance has of late reduced. Many power projects shaping up along the east cost are in serious predicament. We have not yet succeeded in firming up strategies to gainfully exploit the reserves in our immediate neighbourhood - Bangladesh, Pakistan and Myanmar.  Proposed schemes based on Iran and Central Asian countries are yet to take final shape. Import from USA is a serious future option but to a certain extent disadvantaged because of the distance involved. However it is essential that we have the necessary strength to engage in purposeful negotiations. This demands adequate built in flexibility to choose. Infrastructure to handle, store, transport and gainfully use alternate fuels in adequate measure is a must. LNG being a serious candidate todays discussions become highly relevant.  

We take this opportunity to emphasise that Tamilnadu Govt. needs to re-look at its policies towards Chemical Industries in the state, shed its ‘touch not chemicals’ attitude as perceived by many in the chemical sector and embark on a new chemical industry friendly regime in the state. Bold, pragmatic policy initiative in this area is bound to attract more investment into the state and eventually contribute substantially to the revenue and all round development of the state. It goes without saying that balanced development of different sectors of industry and not selected ones alone will ensure long term sustainability and growth. We trust that the state govt. will act soon enough to ensure that the opportunity now at the doorstep is fully cashed and the chemical sector in the state leaps forward in the coming years.   

Late Rains - Mohankumar

Book Review
Mohan Kumar
Late RainsThiruvananthapuram : Folio Publishers-Distributors. 2009.
Pages – 88. Price - Rs.160.


Endearing anthology from a seasoned poet
Mohankumar’s ‘Late Rains’ is a collection of 63 poems, his sixth. The collection is rich in its emotive content, appealing narrative and forceful expression. Reading this anthology and may be a careful study, ‘…..sitting by the window of your book-lined study, read on, over a steaming cup of tea, now looking out on the gently falling rain, ….’ (Late Rains p.9)

will, without doubt, prove rewarding, refreshing and enjoyable. Even though Mohankumar feels that the black clouds have drifted away, throughout the entire length of this anthology, one can still discern the intense personal grief that drives the poet to move his pen. As the poet puts it, 

‘Beneath the solid crust,
a seething molten core’

(This Earth p.10) 

is concealed, deep within. ‘That was not to be’ (p.15) is simple in narration, but portrays a vivid picture of an event, highly saturated with its emotive content Here is a poem that makes the reader vibe exactly the same way as the poet would have wanted. 

‘You too thought so.
You did, I know.

But that was not to be.’

(That was not to be p.15) 

These are words that convey more than their meanings, situations that churn you, emotions that eat away your very consciousness. ‘The Leaving’ (p.16) is again a canvas, accurate in details, poignant in its presentation and highly charged meshing into simple, down to earth sentimentality of the living – the overflowing pain born out of her leaving.

‘I call to her,
‘Aye, where are you?
It’s getting late.’
No response.
I look around, see her
in the now-bare bedroom,
weeping.

Years later,
lying on the cranked-up hospital bed,
between bouts of spasms,
she said to me with a smile,
‘This morning, the doctor said,
“Don’t worry; you’ll get well soon.”

‘There was something about it,
about that smile,
something enigmatic.
Do the dying know
when death is only a few hours away?’

‘The Jewels’ (p.18) is yet another one, extremely powerful both in its emotive and semantic content and profundity of expression. The poet has fully succeeded in translating the intensity of his reaction to the nostalgia that he experiences on the sight of those jewels and handing it over to his readers. In ‘Loneliness’ (p.20) he concludes: 

‘and it sits heavy on your unquiet chest
and you are short of breath.’ 

Turning a little philosophical he confesses, 

‘…………………..The wise,
he knew, do not grieve; but he was not wise,
that way. Grief ate into his vitals.’ 

But as time drifted away, 

‘in the morning, he stood out in the sun, felt
the first touch of spring creep into his bones.’

(The Harbinger.p.24)

It is this realisation that there is warm sunshine outside (p.24) and the fact of his having ‘felt a new strength pouring in’ (p.88) that prompted him, that urged him to write many of the poems that appear in this anthology – and it is this very process of pain, withdrawal and coming back that make them powerful and invigorating to read. Even so, the poet’s mind, resting beside the blooming rose-bush is still in a state of subdued hallucination and refuses to accept the finality of the loss. 

‘For deep in my heart,
I know this for sure:
before the rains come,

you will be with me,
never to part again.’

(Before the Rains Come. p.30) 

‘A Few Tricks of Magic’, (p.34) speaks perhaps of an uneasy official tenure, if he had one, and of which I beg to know nothing. ‘There was a Time’ (p.37) is a beautifully constructed poem, rich in its semantic content and conveyed with a force that penetrates.

Beautiful (p.69) is a piece of well-crafted satire at its best. Bonsai with a Difference (p.67) again looks like a piece of fine satire aimed at our present day education system – we emphasise in plucking them young and turn them out, shrunk and diminutive, unfit even for firewood. Mohankumar is able to metaphorize simple, observed facts of life into generalities with meanings within the apparent with ease and in a beautifully appealing manner. Little Blue Flower (p.56) is a very short poem of just three lines, but highly expressive, eloquently states his approach to his fellow beings. ‘Reading Poetry with Ayyappa Paniker’ (p.22) is his personal reminiscence of the well-known Malayalam poet and an insight into what Paniker, the person was. Words seem to follow him, tag themselves behind every little movement in his mind rather than his looking for words. The morphological arrangement of words, the word to word bonding in these poems are of a superior order and place Mohankumar’s poems in this anthology on par with those of the most acknowledged, anywhere.

Mohankumar’s anthology ‘Late Rains’ is good reading material and is undoubtedly the best of all his published works. From a critical one is tempted to rate the present volume as excellent – perfect syntax, morphology, rich in semantic and emotive content, rich in picturesque canvassing and metaphorizing, all that goes to make them endearing to the reader.

M.Mohankumar is a familiar name in the world of contemporary Indian English Poetry. This is his sixth book of poems, others being ‘Pearl Diver,’ 1988, ‘Half Opened Door,’ 2000, ‘Nightmares and Daydreams,’ 2002, ‘The Moon Has Two Faces,’ 2004 and ‘The Diwan’s Discomfiture and Other Poems,’ 2007. Mr.Mohankumar retired as Chief Secretary, Govt.of Kerala and resides at Thiruvananthapuram.

LIFE BLUES, R.Hema.

A Book Review by P.K.N.Panicker.


Hema is undoubtedly well accomplished – her works are liked and appreciated by everyone; she has been published by Indian Literature - a very prestigious publication of the Sahithya Academy. Her translation of ‘ Krishna Gana’ of Othukkadu Venkatasubba Iyer appeared in the May –June 2008 issue – and she could maintain the emotive content of the original in total.

The prestigious Writers Workshop of Prof. Lal from Kalkotta has come with her ‘LIFE BLUES’, a collection of 54 poems that deal with as the publishers put, on various emotions felt by the poet ranging from elation to sadness. The first part of the book carrying 31 poems are mainly
centred around love while the second part placed under the caption ‘ My Fair Maid’ are on an unseen, silent companion of the poet in her fantasies – an alter ego.



Hema has a characteristic, distinct way of looking at things – a little different from others. Look at these lines

Do you know …….
…………………..
Don’t be thirsty, memories will spring
From peaks;
Golden Moments p.69
I am sure none of us ever thought of rain the way Hema does.
Throughout ‘Life Blue’ we can see her nostalgic past popping out – every where – memories springing out from all corners and at all times.

Nostalgia whiffs across
With a whip and roast – yea
Can I ever set eyes on you
My adolescent fancy-partner? …
………………….
Won’t the revolving earth bring to me
Few of the many joys of the past
Long gone and gone into the deep forever
Faces I yearn to see just a moment
Only a split second just to sense
That the buds of youth and vigour
Are still afresh inside
Nostalgia p.9 & 10

Creeping in with ‘buttered toast’, and ‘blossom friends’ she lands with her ‘adolescent fancy-partner’. This one expression would suffice to get her bracketed along with world poets of re-known. Beautifully crafted expressions, condensing or compressing meanings into delicate combination of words – well crafted word to word bonding to bring out more from every word is what poetry is all about – and Hema seems to have mastered the craft.

Look at other similar captivating expressions such as ‘First passion of pubescence’ (p.33) and ‘One smile composed thousand hints’ (p35).

She wants to be reassured, ‘that the buds of youth and vigour are still afresh inside’. After reading her poems we would have no hesitation to extend her that reassurance.

Hema is very focussed and sharp about what she wants to convey and that makes her extremely powerful.

‘Didn’t you say blue?
…………………….
She will lie in wait’
Life Blues p.11

‘A book and pen once threw She
Soaked with her Tears and Poverty’.
Altered Paths p.20

She is up in arms against all types of oppression and exploitation.
‘Hear not the……………
Rebounds with multiplied fury’
Refractions p.27

Look at the vibrant strength in those words – words that reverberate. However, just as many masters have done, she instead of inviting you to take arms prefers to place her faith in the unknown.

‘When will providence undo their shackles?
Afflictions p.32

She has a very delicate, subtle knack to handle personal emotions, particularly born out of man-woman relationship – may I say sometimes even bordering sensual.

I invite you to ‘Melodies’ p.13.

‘They sang intent, each unto other
…………………………………….
The symphony attained zenith’

Look at ‘Delusions’ (p.16). How well, just as in our acclaimed mythological literature, she pictures the stages and symptoms of blossoming love

‘I search for the face
…………………….
Childish interests long gone’

‘Delusions’ is almost an extension of ‘Faces of Yore’ – yes, those faces that come into the mind and fades away could not have been ‘you’ but in ‘Delusions’ that face does not fade away. But then it is no more time for wishful thinking and frolicking in the effervescent passion of pubescence,
and she concludes that the ‘prattling girl has matured into a woman’ ready to face contemporary realities of the world around her. She is proud of her present status - and of her third eye ‘pride’ (Mine Own Pride p.44) – or is pride itself a metaphor for something else – some one else, only she can answer.

Hema extensively relies on metaphors to construct and support her themes – this makes her really poetic in every sense of the word. In
‘The Nameless Tree’ (p.23), the proud grandsire reminds us of typical the
village elders of yester years, who did everything good for the village for the near and dear but in the end forgets even to own a name. The injured flower that ‘Internalizes its pain and Recoils with hatred’ is yet another fine example (Injured Flower. p.64). And who is her ‘Fair Maid’? I leave it to her to answer.
Hema is equally philosophical at times. Look at her question,

‘How long will it take
For love to Hate?

And she concludes,

‘It takes but a spark’s age’
Love and Hate .p.35

‘Each bud blooms today
Only to whither tomorrow’
A Bud To Boom p.65

Hema seems, though not given vent in her poems explicitly, highly religious in her mind – but has definite views of her own –her religion cannot co-exist with the materialistic – she would rather keep her religious beliefs and materialistic life on different pedestals without having to mix them together.

Hema’s poems do exhibit a distinct thought of her own; often leading to a connectivity and organic unity among them. This is something that makes them rich and inviting the reader to look for a basic trend of thought and philosophy in her poems, in every line and sometimes between the lines.

One poem that stands a little differently ‘My Secret’ (p.56) – because of the words used – words a little outside common usage such as
Hamate , hamadryads, limners, Hebrides , halations, slubber - a little difficult for average readers to understand and appreciate – Was it to camouflage the secrets? – she can be sure she has succeeded in not revealing any in this one piece – but then I am afraid that she has amply laid bare many of her secrets, as a person, as a poet, as a creative artist in her passage from Nostalgia to Golden Moments.

Life Blues - Author R.Hema.
A Writers Workshop Redbird Book -2009. For details Director P.Lal, 162/92 Lake Gardens, Kolkata 700045. Website: www.writersworkshopindia.com Pages 72. Available in Hardback Edition Rs.120/- & Flexiback Limited Edition at Rs.100/-

Greetings

Greetings to all friends. I /We hope to be able to exchange and share our experiences, observations and any other useful information that we may come across. With best wishes and hoping that this blog-spot will eventually become useful to some of you at least at some point of time.

With best regards, Panicker & Leela