The soul never rests What is the pain of one heart If the heart itself is a fire What is the mere burning of love?
―Kaifi Azumi
When Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi – the power couple of the poetry world – take the stage at the Jaipur Literary Festival, there is a quiet silence. But his one smile in them is enough to loosen up loud hoops and applause from the audience. Interestingly, the crowd is mostly made up of college students and young professionals. Their rock star status among young people perhaps indicates that there is still room in India for both Jay-Z and the Loomis of the world.Indian Poetry Now lives on, with a man with lip piercings and arm tattoos reciting ghazals to his girlfriends. How romantic is Javed to his lady love?
“You know, women keep asking me that,” Shabana said. , There is not a single romantic bone in her husband’s body.
Javed replied, “Well, don’t you see a circus trapeze artist doing acrobatics at home?”
There’s nothing more hip than a husband molesting his wife in front of hundreds of people and the audience wrapping it up. Romance was a fitting subject to discuss, as it was mainly featured in the poetry books by their respective fathers, Danak and Daerla, which they presented at the festival. The Dhanak (Rainbow) poem was written by Jan Nisar Akhtar, Javed’s father, and chosen by Shabana. The Daaera (circle) poem was written by Shabana’s father, Kaifi Azmi, and chosen by Javed. Akhtar and Azmi were romantic poets and revolutionaries. They were part of the Progressive Writers Association, and both Javed and Shabana recalled growing up with writers from the association that included names such as Krishan Chander, Ismat Chughtai, Sardar Jafri, and Rahi Masoom Raza. How could I have been so lucky, if not sheer lucky, to have been intimately associated with these great writers and poets during my childhood and boyhood,” writes Javed in his introduction to Daaera. “When I was young, I asked them countless questions about literature, language, and life. Like spoiled elders, they gave me the keys to countless locked doors. rice field.”
The Jaipur Literature Festival may be said to have matured enough. Now in its 16th year, the festival seems like a woman who may have gotten a little weathered, but it still attracts a lot of fans. Of course, there was William Dalrymple, who might have written about the past, but the festival had a very large attendance. A highlight was 2021 Nobel Laureate Abdul Razak Gurna, who delivered the keynote speech. When asked how he kept his humility after receiving the Nobel Prize, he sarcastically remarked: Because the people around you will always reassure you about how stupid you look or how badly you dress. Pulitzer Prize winner Caroline Elkins, Booker Prize winner ‘s Marlon James, and the usual suspects were many other heavyweights. After all, what is a literary festival without Shashi Thalur?
A Humble Victory: Nobel Laureate Abdul Razak Gurna delivered the keynote address at the festival.The atmosphere was lively, with young people in ripped jeans and kitten heels lounging on the lawn and taking pictures of each other. The democratic state of India, how Europeans viewed India before the age of exploration, the future of education, or many other topics that were being discussed at various sessions. Then there were intellectuals who spoke an entirely different language, including words like “iconoclast”, “mendicant”, and “controversy”. Finally, there was the press who shamelessly stocked up on packets of bourbon his biscuits handed out in the media lounge. The food was authentic, with names like lyrics from old black and white movies. But even after four days, he didn’t feel like he had sold out of his Indian heritage, even though he frequented stalls selling waffles and hot he chocolates.
But poetry that is more authentic than food is because there is nothing like poetry that universalizes personal experiences and makes you feel included in the feelings and thoughts of others. During the period, famous poets such as Makarand R. Paranjape, Jerry Pinto, Frank Bash, K. Satchidanandan and Meena Kandasamy read from the collection. Kandasamy read her latest book Tirukkural: The Book of Desire. This is a translation of Thiruvalluvar, an ancient Tamil poet and philosopher.
Meena KandasamyAccording to her, Tirukkural is as relevant today as it was centuries ago. “This is something you can read to your lover in bed,” she said. “But it’s also something you can tweet. Couplet is very tech savvy.” is much more than a lot of sex.” You can tweet like this. “
If Moin Mir (who proved that everyone with movie star looks doesn’t want to be a movie star) elaborated on the wonders of Sufism, Indian-American scholar Nikki-Guninder Kaur Singh poems, especially the writings of Guru Nanak in the Guru Granth. Sahib. “Even though it incorporates Sufism and Hindu Bhagat, the Guru She Grant Her Sahib is pure poetry,” she said. “Hymns [the Mughal invader] Babur, for example, is some of the most powerful war poetry. You can almost hear the crackling of flames as women offer sati and the tearing of Muslim women’s veils. Swords clash and gunshots ring out… He records it all in poetry. “
But along with religion, romance and rebellion, there was also room for satire. Frank Baes recounted his poem one day when he woke up as a DJ. I just walked along and tapped along with the poem.
walk, walk, walk together
I walk with the question without finding the answer….
walk with the last leaf of a cut tree
Taboo consonants and walk
walk with the blood of a stab wound
And when you stepped away from the festival and into the falcon crowing night sky, the sound of poetry echoed in your heart.
