Naari Vaani - In association with Vaani

Naari Vaani: 
The Poetic Voices of South Asian Women

Appearing at this event

Date November 3, 2012
Start // End 7 pm // 8:30 pm
Venue Bush Theatre 
Ticket price £5 / £4 conc.

For buying tickets, please visit SALF website.

Bringing together some of the most exciting talent in women’s poetry today.

Welcome to an event rich in variation which promises texture, nuance and patterns; these are the moods of a new paradigm in poetic literature of South Asia. Bringing together some of the most exciting talent in South Asian women’s poetry today, each of the poets has distilled her own heritage, history and origin to create pieces that are evocative and lyrical yet contemporary.

Shanta’s poems were published initially in major Indian journals during the 1970s. In the mid-1990s her first two collections appeared – the first in India and the second in England. In 2010, Arc Publications brought out her fifth collection of poetry. She is currently working on a New & Selected Poems.

Sweta’s mission as a writer is to create a body of work that reflects social change using words. All of my seven books have the underpinning of my South Asian heritage interlaced with my concerns for the conditions of women globally and their misplaced identity in society.

Shazea’s poetry has been published in anthologies and journals in the UK and US including Ten (Bloodaxe Books, 2010), The Financial Times, Poetry Review, Modern Poetry in Translation. The Courtesans Reply, a long poem sequence will be published as a pamphlet in November 2012.

In association with Vaani

Manni-From a world beyond stars - A Book Review

The two books 'Manni From the world beyond stars' and 'The Turtles Dream and keys' by Benrali are a collection of verses and illustrations.
Berali has used both his skills as a poet and as an artist to tell his readers a story of friendship and coming of age.

Muted yet colourful images have dream like qualities to them in the twin books. The words add to the magic created by the art.

"Jupiter's colors are like slipper orchids, hard to find in nature. colors that I imagine are a memory of ancient seas, colors that remind me of fish from coral reefs."

The authors love for the Eastern box turtle of North America is evident on each page but sometimes a reader might forget that this story is about a tiny turtle and not about themselves.

"Look at all the patterns in a garden, stars in moss, circles in sand, ivy wings, little hats on mushrooms and sun letters on box turtle shells."

The second book Manni from a World Beyond Stars is more suited for children aged 5-9 as it tells a story along with beautiful and mesmerising illustrations.

The books are best bought as a gift for children or even for adults who like rich art illustrations.

By Smita Singh