It’s a good time to be a poet in Mumbai, believes spoken word poet Deepak Ramola. And on the occasion of World Poetry Day, he says it’s time for closet poets to claim their creative identity. While poetry clubs are doing their bit to shed the ‘boring’ tag associated with it, Deepak says, “Thanks to open mic events , Mumbai has been very encouraging. You don’t have to be a poet to start here. Everyone’s giving you constructive feedback to help you improve. Attending a poetry reading session is finally an idea of an evening night-out.”
Author of the poem book The Soulful Seeker, Punam Chadha-Joseph’s tryst with poetry was accidental and she insists that you do not need to be an English Literature student to pen poetry. She says, “In school, you grow up learning about rhyme schemes and meter. Most times, students parrot it out. But now people are embracing poetry. More often than not, people are appreciative about what I do. One would think that poetry is dying, or isn’t taken up by the youth, but they are wrong. The students these days are extremely excited about sharing their poetry.”
Deepak has a few encouraging words for those looking to start: “Don’t write with an agenda. If you write poetry in your style, it is much easier to pen it down. Poetry needs to be free flowing; it needn’t be structured. If you are speaking your mind, it will connect with your audience.” Do you still need an excuse to start
