Reviewed by- Varsha Singh
“To get the full value of joy you
must have someone to divide it with.”
― Mark Twain
The recently published collection of
poems, Voices Across the Ocean is a continuation of the literary companionship
being developed between India and Australia. It is the third anthology edited
by Rob Harle and Jaydeep Sarangi, in a series published by Cyberwit with an aim
of sharing the joy of expanding and exploring the contemporary poetry of these
two diverse countries.
The collection broadly clings with
the theme of emancipation at all levels; personal, social and political as
well. But what does emancipation mean? In general term, emancipation means
freeing or liberating someone from the control of another. It is the act of
setting free from the power of another, from slavery, subjection, or
controlling influence. It can be applied in several contexts: the emancipation
of slaves, the emancipation of minors, the emancipation of a person from
prejudices, the emancipation of the mind from superstition, among others.
There are voices of ten poets in this
anthology; Ali Cobby Eckermann, Bronwyn Owen Allen, Hamish Danks Brown,
Nathalie Buckland and Peter Nicholson from Australia; along with Archana Sahni, D.C. Chambial, Sanjukta
Dasgupta, Vinita Agarwal and Vivekanand Jha from India.
Award winning poet, Ali Cobby
Eckermann’s poems ‘Life Is Often Silent’, ‘Monsoon’, ‘ooooo George Town’ and ‘ooooo
Deceit’ are dark in nature. Her poem ‘Life Is Often Silent’ describes silence
in such a way, that it seems to be the loudest cry. There is no escaping the
silence/when hunting a kangaroo for food by foot/nor the laughter of the chase/
when a goanna is knocked out of a tree/ there is no escaping the silence/ of a
coinless empty pocket today/ nor the laughter of the teenagers/ when soccer is
played in the park/ there is no escaping the silence/ of a grandparents dying
gaze/ nor the laughter of the babies/ when they walk their first step.
Bronwyn Owen Allen’s poems ‘The Clean
Room’, ‘Away’, ‘Two Blackfellas At Rick’s Café’ and ‘Working Life’ hit harder
as they are feminist in nature and the poet too announces herself ‘a proud
feminist’. Her poem ‘The Clean Room’ reminds of Virginia Woolf’s much acclaimed
essay ‘A Room of One’s Own’. Yet I cannot
blame those/whom I love/or accuse them/of holding me prisoner. /The clean room
is my own sentence. /It is I, who has scrubbed and preened/ my wastrel mind/ ‘till
perfectly cleaned, and/ poised to be seen.
Hamish Danks Brown’s poems ‘Mentored
By My Compass’, ‘Valentine’s Day 2002’, The Shadow Which Turns The Border’ and ‘Does
This Round Us Up?’ are of distinct quality. The poet holds an expertise in the
art of being serious and humorous at the same time. Mentored by my compass/only
when it started spinning out,/from a mindset in centrifrugality,/and untrue
north turned back/down upon sorry south to the clear,/block lettering that graphically
pinpoints/what might have to be/the clearing house of my remedy. His poems are
amusingly geographical in nature as well. Sandon Point may not be/such a
massive promontory/in height, scale, or line of sight, … It’s located on the
same Indo-Australian plate,/that the tectonicians have so categorised/as being
burdened by both our large lands/and the wider seas that come between them.
Nathalie Buckland’s poems ‘In My Town’,
‘a walk in the sunshine’, ‘Wasteland’ and ‘Where is your baby?’ cannot be categorized
into one, as they are multifarious in nature, being social, political and
personal as well. Through her poem “In My Town’ she provides a glimpse of
empowered women; In my town/old women carry drums,/they stalk the footpath,/wrists
empowered by rhythm/swelling to taloned hands./Sniffing the air for coffee/they
prowl/with predatory eyes,/while hulking youths/shrink into doorways/fleeing
the grandmother glare./Poised to pounce/they crouch inside a café/ and suss the
street./In my town/old women rule.
Peter Nicholson’s ‘Remembrance Day’, ‘Morning
Assignation’, ‘IV’ and ‘Prometheus’ speak aloud of emancipation of a greater
level and that too on a broader canvas of life. His poem Prometheus provides a
bitter picture of liberation in form of war; Punished for searching, my virtue
is patience, /waiting for liberty bitter endurance; /my senses intuit a new
transformation/but what will result is unknown, uncertain. /Near creeping sand
bars/Limestone reefs/ Link cords of rock, / Shimmering crystal, fossil beds, /Nature’s
systems mirroring/Dynasties above.
Archna Sahni’s ‘Passage to Tibet’, ‘Tibetmata’,
‘Hidimba’s Gift’ and ‘How Zan Lost His Paradise’ are poems tracing their
origination from myths and national histories, with unique sensibility and
blend of admiring creative language. Her poem “Passage to Tibet’ is a
dedication to Dalai Lama; On the terrace/of Drepung Loseling,/in front
of/Dhauladhar ranges,/throw aside all lessons/on creative visualization/and
mediate/with open eyes. /Carried/ on the drumming sound of rain,/listen/to the
early morning chanting/of minks/in whose voices/lies the pain of lost causes,/a
lost home. /Once they chanted/to celebrate, /Now they chant/to heal.
D.C. Chambial’s poems ‘Cat and Dove’,
‘Wingless’, ‘Remorse’ and ‘We Are Living’ are short and crisp in nature but
they hit back towards the marrow less society with great force. We are living
in a land/that abounds in/ wolves, hyenas, and jackals/care for none/save for
their own selves and broods; /proficient in pilfering/the share of hen and
lamb; /concern confined only to clans. /We are living at a time/when morals,
ethics and virtues/emaciated, scared crouch in a corner; /debauchery, larceny,
treachery/ the order of the day. /Love and compassion banished; /jealousy and
hatred rule the roost.
Sanjukta Dasgupta’s ‘Shame’, ‘Goodbye,
Mallika’, ‘Malini’s Role Playing’ and ‘The Eleventh Muse’ are poems empowering
the feminine voices. Her poems beautifully and powerfully depict the
condition/life of a girl, a poetess, a woman and muse. Be it Calliope, Clio,
Erato/ Euterpe, Melpomene, Polyhymnia/ Or even Terpsichore, Thalia or Urania/
The elegant Nine Muses were dedicated/ To muscular arms and strong fingers/ The
creative power pen/ Had to be mightier than the sword/ Those virile
creators/Narrated epics, sagas/Lyrics, elegies, hymns, songs and dance/Tragedy,
Comedy, Astronomy/Scripted sonorous journeys of discovery/ Those inspires
ones/Who wrote chauvinist epics and sagas/Composed heroic poetry and the
alexandrine.
Vinita Agrawal’s ‘Priest King’, ‘Hibiscus’,
‘Call Me Love Tonight’ and ‘Cold in Oppression’s Shadow’ are verses of social,
political and personal emancipation with a broader spectrum. Each of her poems
is idiosyncratic, with plenty of hopefulness and unleashes commendable
creativity. Wrapped in wintry winds that howl with hope/ a plateau lies
tortures and struggles to cope/Its heart lies buried in silence and despair/its
soul lies banished, here freedom must crawl and grope /Mountains shall speak,
so will valleys and dales/Breathe spirit and guts into fiercely blowing gales/
Rebellion will flood the dungeons of hell/Conspire with the moon to invent a
tide that never fails.
Vivekanand Jha’s ‘Stigmatic Widowhood’,
‘Flogging Dead Horse’, ‘Cut-throat’ and ‘Cruelty’ are harsh poems of pain. Poet
of a rare breed, Jha has made the socio-political scenario lay bare in front of
the world enveloping in form of poetry. Ah widow! /You have never been a civil
citizen/always mutilated from constitution/like forbidden and fanatic
institution. /Not for you fundamental rights/Not for you democratic
exercise/These are of the men, /for the men and by the men.
The collection becomes complete with the
hopeful poems of the Editors; Rob Harle’s ‘Sandgate’ and Jaydeep Sarangi’s ‘Stories
Of The Night’.
This is an anthology, which will be
remembered forever for its seriousness, urgency, profundity and universality. A
must read for the lovers of poetry.
About the book
Edited by Rob Harle, Jaydeep Sarangi
Genre- Poetry
Publisher- Cyberwit
Price- INR 200/-