Great Poetry Since Sree Sree(was Re: More About GSS)

uday bhaskar (srijna@hotmail.com)
Wed, 24 Dec 1997 10:46:03 PST 

>
>Uday gaaroo, why don't you tell us who since SreeSree
>wrote great poetry?
>

vAsu gArU,

Thanks for leading up to a great topic. Lets first get to defining what 
is great poetry. 

To me, poetry is great if it reaches the heart, remains in memory, and 
makes you want to quote it every time an occasion arises.

Going only by this definition, I will try to answer your question.

1. "iMtEnaTE saMdrameMtO anukoMTi
    manaki sooreeDukee maddenuMdEnA"

 These lines from naMDUri's yeMki pATalu bring many images to the mind. 
But vara vara rAo used these lines in a brilliant way as an introduction 
to his collection of poems. This collection incidentally was titled 
"samudraM". 

An image of idyllic love, of a forlorn village belle sitting by the 
seashore, looking at the setting sun, waiting for the return of her 
beloved, was transformed by the revolutionary poet to evoke a vision of 
fervor and confidence in his (our) ability to cross all hurdles (the 
samudraM) to reach the destination (the sUryuDu). 

A small sample of vara vara rAo's poetry -

"EmuMdI samudraM uppU uppenA tappa?
 EmuMdI jeevitaM mAtraM, ceemU netturU pOrATaM tappa?"
 
2. There is an age old tradition in Andhra - as a relative comes into 
some one's house, the woman of the house brings some water in a ceMbu, 
and while the relative is washing his feet, narrates all her sorrows. 
Look at how gaddar used this image in his poetry -

"sUryuDU caMdruDU cuTTamayi rAmgO
 kALLAku neeLLicci kanneeLLu teesi 
 ...
 aDivilO sirimalle pUciMdaTannA
 aDivannalaMdaroo bAgunnarAnnA?"

3. Any discussion on good poetry, in my opinion is incomplete if we do 
not discuss cera baMDa rAju. He is one poet who reached more hearts than 
any other (Sree Sree included) in this century. Probably the only poet 
whose poetry reached the masses - as Keats would say, a ditty far 
sweeter than any rhyme. His poetry was published not in books with 
dazzling cover pages, but on the streets and walls of Andhra. Not neatly 
composed and typeset on Japan Art or maplitho paper, but hurriedly 
scribbled by rough hands in the mystic quiet of dawn.

Here is something from cera that I find particularly appealing 
(poetically)-

"rAjula saMskRti prajaladi aMTE celladu celladu celladu lE
 rALLaku poovula parimaLameppuDu aMTadu aMTadu aMTadu lE"

Being handicapped by the absence of books and having to rely on the not 
too reliable cells of my brain, I am stopping here.

Here's hoping that others will pick up this thread.

Regards,

Uday  




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