Distracted by the pandemic
Poets have the power to take us to another world with their lilting words and many express their inner feelings through complex maze of poems. Jhilam Chattaraj is one such poet who expresses her feelings through poems. Recently, she published Noise Cancellation which talks about distraction in pandemic, online education among other topics.
The crisp chill of Hyderabad reminds her of Durgapur, her hometown in West Bengal. “As I embrace my late thirties, I know that deep in my heart, I am still the provincial girl with modest dreams. My transition from a student to a teacher to someone eager to invest her time in poetry has been complex and cathartic.”
Her second book, Noise Cancellation, responds to the present atmosphere of distraction. The book envisions a sustainable consciousness where attention is paid to details of everyday life rather than constant digital alerts. The poems are not didactive, but curated narratives that call for sensuous, aesthetic and cultural appreciation of poetry. Potatoes cooking in poppy seeds, a wet sari soaking the sun, a marriage as vibrant as Ugadipachadi, dilemma of online education, the fluidity of alcohol ink, hold the emotional nucleus of the collection.
“My first book, When Lovers Leave and Poetry Stays published in 2018, celebrates women who own their sensual and sexual approach to life. It took me on a fascinating journey and changed my notion of success and ambition,” says Jhilam Chattaraj who works has an assistant professor at RBVRR Women’s College.
“Poetry taught me the values of patience and failure; reading contemporary poetry in journals, publishing them, and accepting mass rejection letters have been an enriching experience. I admire poets who choose to remain unsalaried, risk their time and reputation on a piece of paper that only few would care to read,” adds Jhilam.
Noise Cancellation has been an Amazon Bestseller list in the Asian Literature Category and reviewed by eminent journals like the Colorado Review.
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