SAJA hosts discussion on contemporary South Asian poetry
SAJA will be hosting a webcast on Wednesday about contemporary South Asian
poetry, from the Diaspora and around the world. Join acclaimed poets and
editors, Ravi Shankar, Nathalie Handal, Pireeni Sundaralingam and literary
agent Sarah Jane Freymann to discuss the conception and shaping of the
extraordinary anthology, “Language for a New Century: Contemporary Poetry
from Asia, the Middle East and Beyond.” Hailed by Nobel Laureate Nadine
Gordimer as “a beautiful achievement for world literature,” two of the
co-editors will discuss the project with their agent and a contributor. The
collection includes poets from 61 different countries writing in over 40
different languages and include poets such as Vikram Seth, Taslima Nasrin,
Michael Ondaatje, Meena Alexander, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Jeet Thayil.
Wed, March 11, 1-2 pm New York time
(see local time around the world: http://snurl.com/djgvw )
Listen live, or later to a recording: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/saja/2009/03/11/Poets-editors-and-scholars-discuss-South-Asian-poetry
Or call-in and talk to him at +1-347-324-5991.
Send your questions/comments via e-mail to saja[at]columbia.edu (subject =
webcast) You can also use the chatroom that will be open at the link above
to ask questions. Or post your comments at http://www.sajaforum.org/2009/03/webcast-discussion-about-south-asian-poetry.html
MORE ABOUT THE BOOK ON AMAZON:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0393332381
MORE ABOUT THE BOOK: “A landmark anthology, providing the most ambitious, far-reaching collection of contemporary Asian and Middle Eastern poetry available. Language for a New Century celebrates the artistic and cultural forces flourishing today in the East, bringing together an unprecedented selection of works by South Asian, East Asian, Middle Eastern, and Central Asian poets as well as poets living in the Diaspora. Some poets, such as Bei Dao and Mahmoud Darwish, are acclaimed worldwide, but many more will be new to the reader. The collection includes 400 unique voices political and apolitical, monastic and erotic?that represent a wider artistic movement that challenges thousand-year-old traditions, broadening our notion of contemporary literature. Each section of the anthology?organized by theme rather than by national affiliation?is preceded by a personal essay from the editors that introduces the poetry and exhorts readers to examine their own identities in light of these powerful poems. In an age of violence and terrorism, often predicated by cultural ignorance, this anthology is a bold declaration of shared humanity and devotion to the transformative power of art.”
“This extraordinary, library-in-one volume: what a resource! . . . A beautiful achievement for world literature.” – Nadine Gordimer, Nobel Laureate
“A symphonic sweep of beckoning cries, praises, prayers, curses, ruminations and revelations. An ensemble rich with diverse voices, here the old and the new converge, and something wholly human and futuristic emerges. . . . Marvelous.” – Yusef Komunyakaa, winner of the Pulitzer Prize
“This rich collection of poetry from Asia, the Middle East, and other parts
of the world, fills a huge gap in our cultural heritage. It is a formidable
achievement, and an important contribution to our education. – Howard Zinn, author of A People’s History of the United States
SPEAKER BIOS:
MODERATOR: Ravi Shankar is Associate Professor and Poet-in-Residence at Central Connecticut State University and the founding editor of the international online journal of the arts, Drunken Boat
Nathalie Handal is an award-winning poet, playwright, and writer. Her most recent books include, The Lives of Rain (short-listed for The Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize/The Pitt Poetry Series and recipient of the Menada Award), and she is the co-editor along with Tina Chang and Ravi Shankar of Language for a New Century: Contemporary Poetry from the Middle East, Asia & Beyond (W.W. Norton, 2008).
Born in Sri Lanka, and educated at Oxford University, Pireeni Sundaralingam currently lives in San Francisco. A former PEN USA Rosenthal Fellow, her poetry has appeared in literary and political journals such as Ploughshares, World Literature Today, The Progressive, and The Guardian newspaper (UK), university texts such as Three Genres (Prentice-Hall, 8th Edition, 2006; 9th edition, 2009), and anthologies such as Masala (Macmillan, 2005). Her poetry has featured at the United Nations headquarters, and the International Museum of Women, as well as airing on national radio in Ireland, Sweden, and the US. A former professor of Cognitive Development, Pireeni has held research posts at UCLA and MIT. Website: http://www.wordandviolin.com
Sarah Jane Freymann has been a literary agent since the 1970’s and is the founder and president of the Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency. The agency has placed its authors with such publishers such as Random House, Ballantine, Bantam, Norton, Chronicle, Clarkson Potter, Dutton, HarperCollins, Morrow, Penguin USA, Riverhead, Rizzoli, Simon & Schuster, and Viking — and the list is eclectic; reflecting Sarah Jane’s diverse interests.
As always, you are welcome to quote from anything said during the
FREE, WORLDWIDE webcasts (50+) at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/saja
When it comes to South Asian poety since times immermorial, Nepal has been undermined. In fact Nepal gave birth to famous poets such as Laxmi Prasad Devkota, Madhav Prasad Ghimire, Siddhi Charan Shrestha, Gopal Prasad Riman. I think, if anybody from anywhere in the world read the work of there poets they would have nothing but admiration for these Nepali poets. Contemporary, they should read Shrawan Mukarung and other Nepali poets, they are excellent. And what about reading some English poems written by a poet writing originally in English from Nepal. Bhuwan Thapaliya’s book , ” Our Nepal, Our Pride,” speaks a lot about the literary scene in South Asia. I would request the concerned authority to do more research in Nepali poetry. There are gems sprouting for sure.