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
