In the cacophony of best-selling fiction and non-fiction tomes creating a buzz at traditional literature festivals, the gentler notes of poetry, that demand one’s careful reading, engagement, and willingness to sit in the quiet, often gets lost. It is to rectify this and carve out a space for poetry alone that Bengaluru Poetry Festival (BPF) was first started, according to co-founder Subodh Sankar, ahead of the festival’s 9th edition set to happen this weekend.
This year’s edition will see 86 invitees and 30 poetry sessions including well known literateurs like Jeet Thayil, Mani Rao, Mamta Sagar, alongside musicians, lyricists and film personalities associated with poetry in some form. Some highlights include Malayalam actor Ramya Nambeesan, lyricist Swanand Kirkire, bhakti music performer Parvathy Baul, and singer Bruce Lee Mani along with Justh, the creator of the viral song Chor. Explaining the inclusion of so many musical acts, Sankar explains, “When you listen to music, poetry is not the first thing that comes to your mind, but when you sort of sit down and examine it, examine it. The root art form is actually poetry. It will be interesting to see how an artist sort of transforms their talent from one art form to the other. The transformation would be very interesting for people to see.” Five international poets – two from the UAE through the Emirates Literature Festival, and one each from the USA, Singapore and Sri Lanka will also be in attendance.
Apart from musical performances, most of the featured names will be a part of discussions, panels, and poetry readings across English, Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi, Urdu, Odia, Bengali and Mizo. Noting that poetry draws more young people than other publishing forms like fiction or non-fiction, Sankar considers the festival a great opportunity for young writers. “More and more young people are reading poetry, not just through the traditional publishing process, but through Instagram, online poetry journals and magazines,” he says.
A section of the festival, consisting of 22 poets, writers, illustrators and storytellers, make up the Children’s Festival, running parallel to the main poetry events.
Sankar says, “Though it is at a poetry festival, it is not just about children’s poetry – the idea is to create that platform where children can spend a couple of days involved in their creative pursuits.” Children will be able to engage with crafts activities, storytelling sessions, outdoor activities, puppetry shows, and more.
(Bengaluru Poetry Festival will take place at Indiranagar Sangeetha Sabha on August 2 and 3, 10am onwards. Entry is free)