Manas Ranjan Mahapatra, Puri, 29 April 2024
Indian English Poets are always fixed in a crux. One of the problems that the Indian poet writing in English faces is the problem of trying to relate himself meaningfully to a living tradition. The poet who writes only in English is unable to relate himself to any specific tradition. She/he cannot relate own-self, for instance, to the tradition of English verse, nor can She/he relate to own-self to a tradition of verse in any one of the Indian languages.
I may quote here what ‘Mary Oliver’, a great American poet said when she looked at the vast domain of poems.
“Poetry is a river; many voices travel in it; poem after poem moves along in the exciting crests and falls of the river waves. None is timeless; each arrives in an historical context; almost everything, in the end, passes. But the desire to make a poem, and the world’s willingness to receive it–indeed the world’s need of it–these never pass.”
It was a wonderful experience to read poems of Dr Ajit Kumar Mahapatra. He is an existentialist poet who believes in humanity. I am highly impressed by his poems.
As felt by Shelley, poets are the unrecognised ambassadors of humanity and Mahapatra’s poems are in conformity of this truth.
Language is our Lifeline. Odisha completed 88 years as a State on the basis of language on 1 April 2024. It was eventually the first state in India formed on the basis of language. Odia has now been recognised as a Classical Language.Dr Mahapatra writes in English, but he belongs to the great Odia tradition of poetry.
The anthology ‘Seeing the World’ by Dr Ajit Kumar Mahapatra is a mix of Odia culture and World View. Poems in this anthology speak of a broader horizon of knowledge. Mahapatra has reflected his mind on a series of topics, from Pandemic to Lord Jagannath, from love to struggle for freedom.
In a nutshell, it’s a complete book that will make the readers joyful. A poetic creation surfaced in a supremely balanced way on the scoreline fragrance of humanity and divinity. The touch and the quantum of space that he has inserted into the book makes it a supremely special creation.
Despite colossal universal loss of manpower during ravaging Covid-19 pandemic, most of the people world over, could sustain themselves through unaccustomed travails and torments of life. Thousand thanks to the courageous, brave medical community, supportive paramedical persons, and huge number of general public, their essential presence during distress, all of their spontaneous supports, can never be forgotten.
Devastating pandemic woke Dr. Ajit Kumar Mahapatra to enchant and enlighten a wide range of readers, through his encouraging poems. He began contributing to the “Odisha Review”, Odisha Government’s monthly journal. Since the poems are available online, many readers got excited and appreciated. His poems cover a large variety of subjects, such as, climate change, current social issues, spiritualism & Indian festivals. His poems definitely invigorate readers’ minds with a touch of creative science mingled with healing love.
Dr. Mahapatra’s delivery of poems is relevant to today and tomorrow.
