poems – Books & Teaa

Solitude and Other Obsessions: A Collection of poems

A collection of 73 poems written by five different authors.

I have been staying away from poetry from quite sometime now mainly because the idea of ‘poetry’ seems to be lost. With social media being the new ‘book’, our means of communication is rather short-lived. We’re always racing against time and if something takes up more than 2 minutes of your time then it’s not worth it. Modern poetry has been receiving a lot of criticism lately but I’ll delve into that in another blog post.

Solitude and Other Obsessions is a collection of poems by 5 different poets. Each poet has expressed their emotions through their unique style of writing and from, covering several themes. Uma Sudhindra, Binod Panda, Trupti Kalamdani, Dr.Shruti Arabatti and Saurin desai are the poets who have contributed in the compilation of 73 poems for this book. The title of the book is self-explanatory. It talks of solitude, and how humans have been coping up with it since time immemorial and how it shapes our personality, instills passion or crumbles our very existence.

Some of the poems are accompanied with an illustration done by the artist Shripad Bhalerao who believes humans are the most complex creatures in the universe, and who tries to decode this very belief by finding a connection between his paintings, writings, and sculpting. His art pieces are vivid, often oscillating between the real and the imaginary.

The beauty of poetry is in its subjectivity. Each poem resonates and holds a deep meaning in our lives. Some give you a warm, fuzzy feeling, others make you feel the pain. This collection of poems is a great read for people who are new to the world of poetry, and who wish to get an essence of what poetry does to the heart and mind.

Authors: Uma Sudhindra, Binod Panda, Trupti Kalamdani, Dr.Shruti Arabatti and Saurin desai

Publisher: NotionPress

Rating: 3.5

Pages: 112

Format: Paperback

Source: Review Copy

Blurb:

We are a species fueled by obsessions. Every human achievement, and every infamy, is the result of an obsession that tormented, possessed and consumed. This is a selection of poetry about solitude and other obsessions that have distracted, driven, destroyed and / or defined us. Spanning genres, styles, emotions, time & place, these works by a collective of 5 poets are a glimpse into the obsessions that have become us

Review: Chameleon Lights

When hope turns dark, I will bring the sun to light it.

Author: Ayushman Jamwal

Publisher: Authorspress

Pages: 47

Format: Paperback

I aspire for the ideal without knowing what it is,

As life keeps changing lanes, I search for depth and meaning,

But with happiness so fleeting and ability so meager,

I am tired an worn out, yet hungry,

I search for an elusive peace in a crowd of broken souls.

In a crowd of broken souls, stands one soul who has beautifully penned down his journey of self-discovery, heartache, revelation and desire in his book, Chameleon Lights. Ayushman Jamwal , Senior News Editor at CNN News 18, writer and poet allows us to delve right into the heart of his poems written over a span of ten years.

The title of the book is quite intriguing. Life as we know it is eerily similar to that of a chameleon changing colors. We’re always surrounded by shadows of darkness, happiness, despair and joy. Regardless of how we choose to perceive life as, it will always be an abyss of myriad colors. The author weaved his thoughts in an intricate manner taking the reader along with him on a roller coaster ride of emotions.

15541347_222818938128178_6203228180845744506_n — Mr.Ayushman Jamwal

Each and every poem in the book talks about various themes and emotions one can go through in a lifetime. The poem, ‘Insanity‘ talks about the mind that keeps spiraling into every direction, where grief hits you right on the face, brightness seems like an illusion and how caught in the web of hatred, jealousy and anger, we lose our sense of self.

‘Pain of a Young Heart‘ is one poem that spoke to me in a million different ways. We looked at world with optimism, believing it to be a bed full of roses. Little did we know, we’d soon be swallowed into a whirlwind of doubt, existential crisis, dread and anxiety of not knowing where we’re headed and what life’s going to throw at us. Ayushman Jamwal writes,

“I knew of life and its queer ways,

but never saw a sudden turn around,

I never knew that somehow,

This world would take me down.”

The poet touched the very core of human emotion through the poem, ‘The Beautiful Mind’. Maybe the world is cruel, and maybe you’re going to be tested but keep holding on, continue believing in yourself and keep showing courage when times are rough. The poet urges us to identify our minds, to awaken the sleeping passion inside of us and to look at the world with new zeal.

Happiness and fulfillment, a desire to all,

Cannot be claimed in heaven or hell

But where lives the saint and the sinner,

In my world,

This is where my light shall shimmer or end.

The poems are individualistic, each having an identity of its own. From ‘Canine Love’ dedicated to the author’s dog, Leo, to ‘Part of the Magi’ where the author has described his childhood days and schooling nostalgia, Chameleon Lights is filled with warmth, pain, desire and love.

Ayushman has dedicated his book to his grandfather Late Group Captain Randhir Singh also known as Kunwar Vyogi, who was an established writer in the Dogri Language. The launch of the book took place at Oxford Bookstore, Kolkata, which was partnered by Kolkata Bloggers and supported by Kunwar Viyogi Memorial Trust.

The beauty of a poem lies in its subjectivity. It’s heart-warming to see how one poem can be interpreted in a million different ways. Chameleon Lights gives the readers all that they could ask for and much more.

If you haven’t already, you can purchase the book from here: Amazon

Review: Iridescence

Life is all about pictures and words.

Author: Abhishek Gupta

Publisher: Half Baked Beans

Pages: 67

Format: Paperback

Rating: 4.5/5

Iridescence is a photo-poetry book filled with beautiful, breath-taking pictures combined with poetry that’s straight from the heart. Abhisek Gupta has weaved magic with his photography skills and the poems are an icing on the cake.

Whoever said a picture speaks a thousand words clearly hasn’t read Iridescence. Life is a mixture of colorful hues. Some days its a bright yellow light shining down on you, on other days its a dark, starry night. The book showcases different pictures taken by the author at various conjectures of his life along with his feelings at that point of time. It’s interesting to read where the picture was taken and what state of mind the author was in. This shows that regardless of us being different to each other, we all stumble across certain points in our lives that are relatable and it makes us feel that perhaps we’re not alone.

In the words of Dr.Subhash Chandra( Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha) who wrote the forward to the book,” It is your story as much as it is mine; it is every person’s story. Delve into it to know you are not alone and to reinvigorate the iridescence of your soul”

The book is divided into two parts and is a blend of multifarious emotions running through our veins. I have a couple of favorite poems from the book one of them being Soliloquize.

The world is not the same,

Every day is a new game,

Like lanterns in the sky,

Consistency doesn’t lie.

Through the above poem, the author talks about how each day is completely different from the other, how time has changed us and continues to do so. In the poem ‘We aren’t the Savers’ the author poses some serious questions. The world, as we know, is not the same anymore. It’s unfair, cruel and uncompromising. In the midst of it all, who is going to be our savior?

We can convince the grime,

To sterile our opportunities,

To immaculate our potential,

We have faith in god,

Because he turned our life this way,

And still we say,

We are actually not the savers.

Iridescence takes you on a journey of self-discovery, it makes you ponder and reflect. A photo-poetry book you can go back to when you’re happy or fall back on when days seem rough. The combination of pictures and poetry makes it a delightful read.