Young poets focus on slew of current issues

Chennai: Encountering a dozen young thinkers with strong views on feminism would perhaps be the last thing you would expect out of a 'no-agenda meet' merely aimed at celebrating and performing poetry.

Nevertheless, a rendezvous of poets organised by co-founder of Mocking Birds, Michelle Ann James, in the city, provided a platform to established and amateur city-based poets alike to recite their compositions out in open, simultaneously addressing contemporary issues facing women in India.

Held ahead of International Women's Day observed every year on 8 March, the meeting, which saw the presence of famed poet Sivakami Velliangiri, script writer Vasanth Raj and over 20 youngsters from city-based colleges, ensured that contentious issues facing the womenfolk were discussed without judging the quality of poems recited by the participants.

While physical abuse survivor Sharada recounted the harrowing experience of abuse she had encountered at the age of 21 through her poem titled 'Black and Blue', Deepsikha Agarwal, a first-year student pursuing Bachelors in English (Hons), recited a rather courageous poem titled 'No country for women', which told gory tales of rape, prostitution and injustice meted out to rape survivors.

The poeem 'Everytime you judge her' by Vasanthi S P, a first-year student pursuing Bachelors in Economics at Stella Maris College, laid emphasis on the unfortunate way the patriarchal society continues judging women based on how they laugh, what they wear and where they go.

But it was the men coming out in support of the women that added zest to the event. MBA graduate Arun Kumar Suresh recited a good three poems - all of them rich in metaphors. Using a lark, a tower and candle as allegories, Arun ensured the audience was caught in rapt attention while discussing the essence of motherhood and importance of freedom in the lives of women.

There were also a few poems, like the ones presented by class 11 student Shervin Rodriguez and IIT-Madras student Asvin V that focussed on issues sans women empowerment. While Rodriguez's micropoems gave the gathering an insight into the happenings of his life, Asvin's poem explored various hues of sexuality. "When a child is born, so is a mother," read a line from Ishwar Krishnan's poem recited in Tamil, even as many applauded the youngster's choice of words.

On the other hand, Sivagami recited many of her published works, a lot of which were centered on women hailing from the underprivileged background. Her works made a special mention of o womenfolk from Madurai, who, according to her, have learnt the art of cutting a rapist's genitals with a sickle (this sentence was received with a loud guffaw by many in the audience).

A poem by Michelle, recited exuberantly at the end of the session, spoke about the plight of women in India. And so, even as the end of the two-hour session brought into fore a lot of stories hailing womenfolk, it was the memories that mattered to this group of poets, who also experienced a sense of fulfilment on setting the right tone for a debate in future.