The customary efforts of providing basic amenities to the teeming millions must not be reckoned as manifestation of good governance and benevolence and the politicians should not be boastful on this count and it is what is conveniently ignored in an era where the emotions are usually taken as concrete evidence, regrets the prominent Hindi poet Nand Chaturvedi in his thoughtful, revealing and astutely crafted poems.
His latest collection of poems, “Aasha Balwati Hai, Raajan” (the Hope is a repository of power, King) appeared recently after his death and they produce a counter narrative of startling rejection of facts coupled with ever-increasing primacy of emotional credence to incontestable evidence. It is heartening to note Nand Chaturvedi’s creative oeuvre is made accessible by Samalochna, e-literary journal by posting a detailed and perceptive article by a promising critic Himanshu Pandya.
Arun Dev, a prominent Hindi poet launched the first e-literary journal of Hindi six years ago and the journal has more than a million hits. It publishes articles; poems, story, memoir, translation, satire, travelogue and special features on paintings, music and other forms of fine arts and its insightful content prompted many universities of India and abroad including Poland University and Jawaharlal Nehru University to make it a part of their recommend readings.
Nand Chaturvedi is not sore over the prevalence of distortions, spins and lies but the public response to the mendacity irks him more and it is brilliantly highlighted by Himanshu as the poet always finds the purveyor of the truth on the slope of contempt and disdain. In his slapstick tone, Nand Chaturvedi asserts that alternative facts are being dished out to obliterate the reality. Their claim that law of nature no longer exists they make the law of nature fire the imagination of people at large and truth is no longer a pervasive currency. The poet says “now truth sells in the market of goods and advertisements/ the river carrying the water of the soul / became extinct in sand of ruinous days/ For poet there is a glimmer of hope: The hope still flickers, the king
Losing battle
It is not disheartening to fight with one’s disappointments and failure but it is extremely painful for the poet to realise that he is forced to wage an unavailing war on all counts. Days long and torturous spent in meaningless fighting and a moment of introspection leaves completely down cast. Delineating the recurring themes of Nand, Himanshu refers to his three poems on the fifty years of independence and aptly remarks the vile manifestation of freedom has been its longing for victory and the singular interpretation is unacceptable. It is a dream and reality and the poet says: “Independence always wanders through your agony and torture/ I (Independence) represent your will power/ the unexpected craving for your victory.”
One of the deeply moving poems of Nand Chaturvedi, “Does this letter carry your address?” is essentially a critique of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s master piece novella, “No One Writes to the Colonel”. Here the plight of a forsaken protagonist is not narrated. Nand is basically concerned with the people who care though they are unnamed. I have not written address on the letter / at that time I am in a hurry / I want to get to the people who are concerned / much before time
His poems betray an alert and critical mind and summing up Nand Chaturvedi’s frequent disappointment with the act of writing, Himanshu deftly reminds us that that when we feel strongly about the futility of writing, you need writing the most.
Samalochan did well to post a selection of poem and a brilliant analysis of Nand who earnestly tries to fixate his poems on the context that we are losing what is meaningful to humankind and represent an intellectual temperament.
