The editorial of the latest OPA

WELCOME

TO

OUR POETRY ARCHIVE

 

I think when you read a wonderful poem, when it starts, by the end of it you’ve moved so far – and you think how did you move me so far in so few words?”

–- Tishani Doshi

It has been a privilege and an honour for me to be touched by Poetry!  And even more humbling to be a contributor and now part of the Editorial Team to this wonderful E Zine which embraces Poets and Poetry from different corners of the earth. What unites this forum together is the beauty of the poetic form and the common lingua franca~ English!

Born out of passion of NillavroNill Shoovro in April 2015, Our Poetry Archive has indeed come a long away in facilitating a cross cultural exchange of world poetry. It has also given space and recognition to many wonderful new poets from all over the world. This special edition in May celebrates Indian Poets writing in English.

Indian English Poetry has made a rich contribution to the world of literature and is associated with writings by Indians both residing in India as well as literature from the Indian diaspora. Tracing its journey, one remembers the patriotic and spiritual poetry of Michael Madhusudan Dutt, Aurobindo Ghosh, Rabindranath Tagore and Sarojini Naidu.

Moving on from that era in post colonial India, contemporary poets have written about a variety of themes, from forging a new identity, to social issues, and even autobiographical content.

A strong trend in modern Indian Poetry is the use of free verse, non rhyming poems with irregular verses, a literary style where thoughts, feelings and emotions are presented in a free flow. It experiments with language and imagery and is often influenced by globalisation.

Contemporary Indian Poets have made it big in the world arena. Poets like Vikram Seth, Sudeep Sen, Tishani Doshi, Ampat Koshy, Santosh Bakaya to name a few have global following. Well known amongst the diaspora is Rupi Kaur who with her illustrative poetry has caught the imagination of the Indian youth in different parts of the world. Dr Ampat Koshy has invented a new form of sonnet called the Roseate Sonnet where the first Alphabet of the last four lines when read together spells Rose. Many poems have been written in this format.

And so here it is ladies and gentleman. A special edition dedicated to Contemporary Indian poets writing in English and contributing to world literature. Happy Reading!

Ipsita Ganguli

From The Editorial Desk

OPA

https://ourpoetryarchive.blogspot.com/2019/05/ampat-koshy.html?fbclid=IwAR1diPvOqF5y1Mx1C85gmXVTF5EPcrYdrePnwfYO1ShseRb4dqyYCILbo8c

AMPAT KOSHY

A ROSEATE SONNET-1

On a cancer patient after she had to shave her head due to chemotherapy

Welcome, light, coming through the window

Fall softly on my eyes

Remind me of dawn coming after the dawn

The sun and its countless dawns

Welcome, the sights, soothing my eyes

Of curtain and pots and plants

Familiar, and the world outside

Sing to me, of green and new lives

Welcome, the breeze, that gently comes

Into my room and caresses

My head and skin

With no barrier now between

Sing to me of light breathing life into yonder

Of light and breeze giving me, again, head cover'

Rapt, unseen, the thoughts behind your eyes

Over and over in circles, swim like fishes

Swim where the light is, gain strength where the shade is

Energizing, to help you overcome your plight

A ROSEATE SONNET-2

On the nude photo of a male friend

When Michaelangelo sculpted David

When he painted Adam on the chapel's ceiling

Yeats said it was for girls at puberty

To find the first Adam in their fantasy

Mapplethorpe oft used the male nude

To make the same point, in ebony

That while all cats may be in the dark, grey

All women aren't, or all men

Do not demonize, do not eroticize

Do not criticizie, do not glamorize

Rather, valorise my art that tries

Off-beat, to not objectify

Something we all want to sexualize/sensualize

Eyes blind. But here stands Mars without his arms.

ROSEATE SONNET FOR MY MUSE – 1

I do not kiss your photograph

Your eyes are glazed like a dead fish's

I want more than a mimeograph

Give me lies, truth, lows, middles, highs.

I do not worship your idol

To which one can only talk

No word from it can I, in return, cull

It has feet but cannot walk

Goddesses are rare, and one precious

Hands have they, but they want caresses

Rose dancing on the cusp of nothingness

One is worth the manifold

Seeing your breasts are a pair of lights

Every time on their grace I (have to) keep a tight hold

AMPAT KOSHY

"Dr. AMPAT KOSHY is a seasoned poet whose CV is peppered with numerous books and publications. He has written seven of those books and co-written four other books. This freethinking and unconventional doctor has edited and contributed to several anthologies that would read as a virtual countdown of the world’s best literary works. He wrote a seminal book on Samuel Beckett, the Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. It is entitled: Samuel Beckett's English Poetry: Transcending the Roots of Resistance in Language. When Dr. Koshy was a kid, he won an international prize for poetry. He made a mark as a Pushcart nominee for poetry in 2011. The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize published by Pushcart Press that honours the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot." After that, he won several awards for writing as critic, academic and poet. However his crowning glory so far was being adjudged best academician this year in his university, Jazan University, Saudi Arabia, where he teaches presently as an Assistant Professor. He is presently working on a novel, a film script, as well as grinding hard as editor for a book of essays and four or five collections of poetry etc. His books have been to Frankfurt, London, Dubai and Turkey, not to mention Indonesia and the short stories collection Scream and Other Urbane Legends have been shortlisted in the Hindu Literary Prize. He has also written online and offline in anthologies etc…basically, if achievement is a muscle, then he is muscle-bound! Above all else his zest for love, life, wife, wine, women, family, the grim reaper, romance, sex, God, autism and song inspire him to write potently and prolifically."