Bendre's song

March 01, 2012 08:34 pm | Updated July 19, 2016 04:07 pm IST

Poet Da. Ra. Bendre paid a tribute to some of the early women writers through his poems. He wrote about Tirumale Rajamma, Belagere Janakamma and his poem on Kodagina Gouramma, on her unfortunate premature dearh is unmistakably elegiac in nature. The poem titled “Tangi Gouramma” was published in his collection “Namana” released nearly 20 years (1958) after Gouramma's death. The release of the collection however, may not have been the year in which the poem was written. On reading this poem, one infers how overcome by grief Bendre was at the death of Gowramma, who was so immensely gifted as a writer.

The poem, a sonnet, describes the nature of the tragedy in its octet and acquires the nature of a personal comment in the sestet that follows. Gouramma, as was her usual practise, went for her evening swim and drowned in the cold currents. From the interview with her son B.G. Vasant in “Mareyalagada Kathegalu: Kodagina Gouramma”, who was a boy of eight when his mother passed away, you learn that it may have been due to suffocation.

The poem in translation —

Sister Gowramma

At the happy communion of the goddesses of water and woods

You dived into the beckoning inlet, its familiar waters,

This mother embracing the bosom of her mother river

died; did the warm Cauvery go callously cold?

I shudder in recollection – oh, how did it happen?

Where from did death creep upon a life yet so tender?

Cords of love of the beloved, child and friends

Failed to tug you back – oh, how did you go under?

Angelically clad, fair and cherished Gauri

Shining bright in the firmament, a daughter of Cauvery

A picture of purity, cast in moonlight,

Early steps doused her in glory bright

Dawn's dewdrops carry compassionate tears

Your gift to life was a shower of cheery drops.

(Translated by Deepa Ganesh)

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.