Nishi Pulugurtha and Nabanita Sengupta
Poetry provides a space to express, a place that is at times assuring, at times an allegory that speaks of lived experiences in myriad ways. The poems in this issue of the IPPL journal are a coming together of several voices that bring in varied experiences and expressions to the fore. It is a general issue with poets writing on diverse themes and subjects. IPPL has always encouraged new poets to write and share poems. This journal is a reflection of that, as we have here very young poets and those who have taken to poetry recently, sharing space with some of the best voices of Indian poetry. This leads to a democratization of poetic voices, allowing fresh perspectives to exist together with experiences. This is one of the best ways in which poetry can grow.
Though most of the poems in this volume are in English, we also have some excellent Bangla poems by Susmita Bandyopadhyay. The spirit of the organisation is intercultural and we earnestly hope that more poets would come up with their writings in other languages too. Languages exist in continuum of human societies. It is through mutual appreciation, acceptance, and collaboration that they can be enriched. IPPL therefore, believes in promoting various languages and ensuring a conversation beyond linguistic barriers.
The issue also has a segment on book reviews with IPPL members reviewing three new volumes of poetry. Dhee Sankar reviews Nikita Parik’s My City is a Murder of Crows, Namrota Purakayastha reviews Aritra Basu’s first volume of poems, A Printed Mixtape and Nishi Pulugurtha reviews the debut poetry volume by Amita Ray, Until Birds Sing. Both Dhee Shankar and Namrota Purakayastha are young poets and first time reviewers and it is interesting to see them reading and responding to poetry .
While writing and reading poetry is an important aspect of IPPL, there has always been discussions and responses to poems in the space (both physical and virtual) that IPPL members have often found themselves interacting. It is hence, but natural, to find four essays that discuss poetry by practicing poets – Farah Imam’s essay discusses Sutapa Chaudhuri’s poem “Me”, Monica Louis in her essays analyzes three women poets, Veronica Gambara, Vittoria Colonna and Gaspara Stampa, Smitha Sehgal essay is titled ‘On Seamus Heaney’s “Two Lorries” ‘ and Tathagata Banerjee writes on Tagore and Bengali Modernist Movement.
IPPL is grateful to all its members for taking such an active interest in the running of the journal. It is their spontaneous response to the call for poems and the enthusiasm to be a part of this poetry endeavour that gives us as editors the encouragement to go on. Reading through all the submissions and selecting the best ones among them also enriches us as editors. This journal therefore, is as much a labour of love of the editorial board, as it is of the contributing poets. As we go live on the sixth foundation day of IPPL, we hope that this journal will find its way into the hearts of poetry lovers and also find many discerning readers who will encourage us with their comments and critical inputs.