Contemporary poetic pallet is much open minded, wider and larger: An online interview with Tikulli Tiku
Tikulli Tiku: Freelance writer, India
Dupur Mitra: Do you think poetry play role in your society? If yes how and if not why?
Tikulli Tiku: Literature cannot exist in isolation with the society. I think Poetry does play a certain role, it should. We have seen over the ages how poets have been able to bring out the turmoil, the frustrations, the tragedies of individuals struggles as well as struggles of society in general. I think individual passion is not just the only theme now days. Poetry has evolved and this change was essential to keep it relevant. Poets are consciously and strongly bringing out the and traumas of humanity and universal complexities of the world we live in; political struggles, justice, equality and many more issues that plague us. I have seen a rise in feminist literature especially poetry in last few decades and for a patriarchal male dominated society it is a great breakthrough that issues which were barely discussed are now been brought out through sensitive yet powerful medium of poetry. I think modern Indian poetry is having a significant positive impact socially in more than one way. It is true all across the world as far as I see it. There is an awakening although it may not be at very large level but poetry like all other art forms, for example theatre and painting etc, is finally finding its place.
Dupur Mitra: Who are your major influences as a poet?
Tikulli Tiku: I love the works of Neruda, Octavio Paz, Lorca , Jose Marti, and other latin American poets, Nissim Ezekiel, E.E. Cummings, Langston Hughes, Emily Dickenson, Edgar Alan Poe, Carl Sandburg, Rober Browning, John Dryden, Walt Whitman, Charles Bukowski. Faiz, Nirala, Jayashankar Prasad, Kamala Das, Tagore, Vivekanand, Mahadevi Verma, Sumitra Nandan Pant and so many others. I can go on forever. I have come across some brilliant works by friends on Facebook. Some of these poets helped me immensely in developing my own style.
Dupur Mitra: What does being a poet mean to you?
Tikulli Tiku: I don’t know how to define that. It also means being aware of oneself and all that is around us, being relevant and observant. Maybe it just means being myself. It has made me question, seek answers and evolve as a person.
Dupur Mitra: What is poetry?
Tikulli Tiku: Poetry for me is a spontaneous flow of life and emotions in all its myriad hues. It’s an expression of self, a way to connect and strike a balance with your inner and outer self. Poetry makes one discover and celebrate who we are vis – a – vis the chaos of life.
Dupur Mitra: What are your observations about trending of world poetry?
Tikulli Tiku: I am not qualified to answer this. I am just a student finding her roots. Still, I believe that several new voices have emerged lately and at least some of them will survive as major poetic influences.
Dupur Mitra: Is poetry movement can improve the poetry? if yes how, if not why?
Tikulli Tiku: I think it can and it should. I don’t know how. Talking of Indian Poetry moment I think it needs to rise above mutually exclusive groups. It needs to be more accessible.
Dupur Mitra: What is your opinion about today’s world poetry movement?
Tikulli Tiku: As I said, I am not qualified to answer that because I do not closely follow the trend. I think Internet has become a powerful tool for poetry movement. People are getting more exposure to poetry in various languages from across the globe. Poetry groups, online publications, workshops, blogs, sharing of poems on social networking sites etc has created a scope for poetry to flourish and expand.
Dupur Mitra: How would you describe the contemporary poetry?
Tikulli Tiku: Contemporary poetic pallet is much open minded, wider and larger, which is good. These days poets are free of hang-ups and the use of language, English or relational has a creative flavour of its own not influenced by the past. There is a lot of experimentation and uninhibited use of language in which they write or speak. I think the Indian poetry has vast subject matter these days and is very introspective and gregarious. Poets are exploring all kind of subjects and forms.
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