Why I Like This Poem! - 1
Rao Veluri (rveluri@smtpgate.anl.gov)
Tue, 10 Jun 97 11:16:55 CST
maachiraaju saavitri left India as a child with her parents and grew up
in Canada. She has kept in touch with Telugu language and literature,
surprisingly a little more than usual. She holds a Ph.D., in Meteorology,
lives in San Diego and works as consulting physicist.
The first collection of her poems, entitled 'antarjaateeyam' was published
in 1984, and the following poem is from that collection. I hear that a
second collection (don't shoot me!)is getting ready to be released during
the Los Angeles TANA Conference in July 1997.
Read her vacana kavita, and, if you still have patience and time
please read why I (We!) like the poem!
nalupu telupulu
-- maaciraaju saavitri
alanaaDu // nallanivaaDini kRshNuDani, vishNuvani
paramaatmuDani // dEvunigaa kolicaamu
nallani daanini paarvatigaa, draupadigaa
jaganmaata anee, jaganmOhini anee
dEvatagaa keertimcaamu // saundaryamgaa nirvacimcaamu.
okanaaDu // nallanivaarini, 'rangu' vunna vaarini
aNagadokkE tellavaari jaati vicakshaNa raajyaangaaniki
yeDuru nilici pOraaDaamu
aa pOraaTamlOni paaThaalatO // swaraajyam saadhimcina mahaatmuni
avataara purushuDani koniyaaDaamu.
monnaTi naaDu // aa mahaatmuniki Ekalavya sishyuDai
atani Saanti maargamlO, adEsatyaagrahamtO
tanasaaTi nallavaariki vimukti kaligimci
vaari paurasatvaaniki gurtimpu teccina #King# ki
marO gaandhi anee, Saanti doota anee
birudu lalamkarimcaamu.
eenaaDu // nallani dEvuLLaki neelapu mEkappu kappi
maayam cESaamu
nallani saumdaryaaniki tellani #powder# pulimi
paaDu cESaamu
nallani aa #King# dESaaniki vacci akkaDunna nallavaarini
alusu cEstaamu.
nalupu takkuvani, telupu ekkuvanE // nammakaaniki moola mEmiTi?
nalupu cEDDadani, telupu mancidanE // viSwaasaaniki samardhana EmiTi?
telladoralu veLLi nalla doralu vaccinaa
pOyina aa telladanam kOsam // praakulaaDE baanisatwamaa?
manushulanu kalusukoni // manasulanu telusukoni
manci ceDDalu niryanimcE Opika lEka
rangunu baTTi antarangam kolavaalanE sOmaritanamaa?
kotta dESamlO, kOTisamasyalatO
kaakaa paTTEnduku sulabha maargamani
addamlO manapratibimbaaniki kaLLu moosukoni
mEmu nallavaaLLam kaamu tellavaaLamE
ani kulikE andhatvamaa?
mance ceDoo vumDEvi manasulalO // mukhaalalO kaadu
andacandaalumDEvi kanumukku teerulO // mEni ramgulO kaadu
samaanatwam kaavalasimdi amdaritO // adhikulatOnE kaadu.
ippaTikE vunnayi manaki caalaa aDDUgODalu
manushikee manishikee madhya manasukee manasukee madhya
imkaa kottagaa itarula moodhanammakaalu
digimati cEsE avasaram manaki lEdu
rEpaTiki
manam saadhimcEdEmiTi?
ramgu hamgulu marrici pOyi
saaTi vaarini gauravimcE maanavatvamaa?
dakshiNaafrikaaku pOTeegaa
manamkooDaa velaga beTTE jaatyahamkaaramaa?
---------------------------------------------
Why I (We!) like this poem
There are very few poets whose vocabulary consists of words that spring
from life's experiences and who could avoid using words they imbibed from
rote. And, Savitri seems to be one such writer.
This poem uses ordinary words that make us think and exposes the familiar
world in a different and altered perspective. We get angered at ourselves.
And, we might reconcile ourselves at our inadequacies and become a
litle more saner and softer!
The poem starts of with our gods who are black and elates us with excitement
in a way; before that excitement wanes down the second stanza leads us into
our struggle for our political independence and reminds us of Gandhi and his
greatness and lulls us. And, it lulls us with pride that not only our gods;
but we too are black! Before that pride vanishes it reminds us that we have
praised the black leader Martin Luther King Jr.,of our adopted country.
Suddenly, the poem exposes our deception. We powdered(talcumed!) our black
gods and made them 'light blue.' The poem tells us that we tried to avoid
the black color; we aren't sure of our beauty in black any more and we
wanted to be like 'somebody else!'
It quickly asks us, 'is it slavery, laziness or blindness?' before we
recover from our own deceipt. Finally, the poem forcefully tells us, as if
it is passing a judgement that we need not import others' blind beliefs.
In the entire poem there are no useless words; there are no words
'borrowed from else where' that could be chilseled to make this into a "poem."
In the heydays of romantic poetry importance was given to ornamentation
and structure in a poem. Now, both have disappeared. That may be one
of the several reasons for the advent of prose-poem. Very few people
understood the soul of a prose-poem, and what makes it wholesome and crisp.
In a way, only those who have left the Telugu soil can write a poem
like 'nalupu telupulu.' In Teluguland, we do not have race consciousness.
May be, as Indians we are not conscious of race. We don't even have a
suitable word for 'race.' We use the word 'jaati', but it is used to connote
caste, varNa, distinction of genders, differences in animal kingdom etc, etc,
etc. Moreover, we have been subjugated at least three times by the
'white-colored' races, and we have probably for ages nurtured a belief that
white is superior, better and desirable. And, if we ever have to say
about black and white we conveniently hide ourselves under the political
cloak of 'sarva maanava samaanatvam' and try to talk through that hood.
This poem rips that cloak and hood, not only that of thought, but also of
the 'so-called' poetic language we have been accustomed to! There are a few
more good poems in 'antarjaateeyam.' Of course, in Savitri's poems, one
could find some common weaknesses found in Telugu poetry, acquired from
old 'habits.' It is not surprising! New poets usually try to emulate those
who have already "established" themselves as poets. The best that young
and upcoming poets like Savitri could do to themselves is not to be
influenced by 'poets' who have already made a "name for themselves."
[ velcEru naarayaNa raavu and I heard this poem in 1985 when saavitri
recited it during the TANA conference. I still recall she was a little
afraid to recite! I(We) met her very briefly and expressed our
appreciation. During those days I used to 'edit' a monthly journal
from Chicago and asked her if I could reprint some of her poems in
that paper. I got a nod! Then I had to nag, coax and even threaten
naarayaNa raavu to write his and my feelings about the poem. The following
is brief and slighly revised summary of what was written then in that paper!!
That's why the 'we.' It is not the 'Royal We; it is the real we!]
Regards & Thanks.
Venkateswara Rao Veluri