So, last Wednesday was World Poetry Day
Illustration/Uday Mohite
So, last Wednesday was World Poetry Day. (It was also Sparrow Day, but I'm not an ornithologist, you see, I'm a poet).
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In fact, I'm a scholar on all kinds of poems — odes, blank verse, limericks, and my own version of the Haiku, called Kaiku (but more on that later).
See, writing poetry is maha simple — kya difficulty hai? You have to pen some lines with thoda rhyming-shyming, you share them on social media/Whatsapp and in no time people call you a poet. Then you get invited to one or two literary festivals — like this year I'm speaking at Bhandup Lit Live, Oshiwara Poetry Circle, and Gorakhpur Poets Rock. My idol among poets is John Masefield. His masterpiece 'BMC Sea Fever' is my favourite — I must go down to the sea again To the filthy beach and sky To clean what the waves have thrown backAnd separate wet from dry I have two books of my poems out — The first is called 'I'm a Poet and I Know It'. The USP of this my first collection is I write from a feminist standpoint. Clever huh? Here's a sample — Every day I go to work But my home I never shirk I have three babies Even my dog has rabies I water my plants While I Buddhist chant The second collection of poems is titled 'Forget Haiku… Kaiku?'
You know, dear reader, that a Haiku is a delicate three-line Japanese verse.
You may ask, what is Kaiku? It is fully my invention — it is Bambaiya free verse, short sentences, written in a brief questioning format. (Also, the last word has to be 'kaiku?')
Indian pace bowler Mohammed Shami is in a spot of bother on account of a wife scorned, right? This is my Kaiku for him —
Shami
infamy
Match fixer
Daredevil
Why Shami why
Asks BCCI
Hasin Jahan
Kahan se kahan
Why you did this masti?
Have you no shame-i
Kaiku?
Here's a 'Kaiku' about Facebook stealing our user info — Zuckerberg Made us Suckerberg Used his reach To breach Us users… made us losers Kaiku?
Are you getting a gist of my genius, dear readers?
Here's my 'Kaiku' about politicians hugging —
RaGa hugs SoGa
NaMo hugs BeNe
And DoTr.
And NaSha
All this PDA
Seems Ok
Kaiku?
I also write limericks. Take this one about the Delhi CM.
There was a man from AAP
Who thought his muffler looked
really sharp
He's been apologising lately
To every Tom Dick and Jaitley
While we welcome the return of
his 'baap'
Okay, dear reader, got to bounce. I have to answer an email from the esteemed organisers of the WALIOUMBWAGOHLOF Festival —We Are Legends In Our Own Minds Because We Got One Hundred Likes On Facebook.
Rahul da Cunha is an adman, theatre director/playwright, photographer and traveller. Reach him at rahuldacunha62@gmail.com
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