Very often, art opens the door to dreams and hopes, weaving together the talents and stories of many and, at times, firmly and unapologetically fighting against injustice. Hailing from Kerala, poet, lyricist, and activist Aleena is one such voice that echoes through powerful and fiery poems.
In the city for an evening of poetry and conversation titled Good Christian Girls Don’t Talk About Caste, her words reflect the path she has been on. Her poems often feel like a mirror inviting the world to reflect on its flaws. Through her poetry night, she hopes to address the caste discrimination existing in society. “My works are derived from my lived experience, stories I have heard while growing up, the things I saw around me, and the things I’ve heard happening to women around me,” says the 29-year-old author of Silk Route and recipient of the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Kanakashree Award.
Poetry, for Aleena, is not just an act of artistic expression but an emotional journey that requires her to process and overcome past trauma before she can weave it as an art, which comes with its own challenges. “A major challenge is that we are being very vulnerable in front of a crowd who doesn’t care about you,” she says.
As a popular figure online and being a Dalit poet in a society where inequality prevails, she has often faced backlash. “In today’s society, being vocal about all these things is dangerous. The more visible you are, if you have a platform, the more people are going to attack you,” she confides, adding, “But I remind myself that I don’t need their validation. The people who attack me online? I don’t need to be accepted by them.”
Amidst all of these barriers, for Aleena, the biggest driving force is truth. “Once you see the truth, you cannot unsee what is happening around and go back. It’s always going to be there and the more you try to push it away, the more it will hurt,” she says.
Reflecting on her first time performing in the city, she shares, “In online spaces, we are quite alone. So it’s nice to have a gathering offering a space for like-minded people in real life. It’s good for our mental health,” she concludes.
(Aleena will take the stage on April 23 at Atta Galatta, Indiranagar at 7.30pm)