Explore poet in you with ‘Unexplored Mic’

By Sukhjeet Kaur Hyderabad: Art, poetry, songs and literature are what keep us alive. ‘An Unexplored Mic’ has been a comfortable and encouraging sharing space for hundreds of literature lovers. Abhirami and Srikumar founded An Unexplored Mic (AUM) to take open mics across small towns and cities across South India. Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Coimbatore […]

By Sukhjeet Kaur

Hyderabad: Art, poetry, songs and literature are what keep us alive. ‘An Unexplored Mic’ has been a comfortable and encouraging sharing space for hundreds of literature lovers. Abhirami and Srikumar founded An Unexplored Mic (AUM) to take open mics across small towns and cities across South India. Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Coimbatore have been a hotspot for two years for these open mic events.

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On Saturday, under the roof of a beautiful cafe in Sindhi Colony, AUM completed its silver jubilee of conducting open mics. It was their 25th Open mic event, and that too a house full. The cafe’s ambiance had become magical and healing to one’s heart and soul with passionate poets and listeners.

There were 18 speakers from different backgrounds but united by the shared love for poetry and storytelling. There was a transition between many themes and genres of poetry. There were first-time performers, experienced ‘shayars’ and occasional performers who confidently narrated their experiences.

One genre which was common among many acts was heartbreak and love. A ‘shayari’ of poets of Shamsher Khan in Urdu was also presented.

Co-founder Srikumar said, “This time in Hyderabad, we witnessed many new faces. I am so glad we can reach out to fresh talent. Reaching out to more people and connecting a chain of artists all over India is what we aim to do.”

Queer Open Mics

A heart-wrenching story of the trans community was also narrated in a dramatic style by Hemanth, who felt storytelling was one of the best ways to spread social awareness about issues like homophobia. AUM aims to conduct more Queer Open Mics to provide a platform for the queer community to come forward.

A first-time performer at an open mic, Ananya enjoyed her time by participating and listening to something new. She said: “My passion is writing, and coming here was a decision I will never regret. I loved how everyone had different experiences to share. I got to know my areas of improvement. I’m definitely looking forward to more such events by AUM.”

The AUM community is growing on Instagram (@anunexploredmic) as well, with the next event to be in Bengaluru on July 10.