Book: Subliminal
Poet: Radha Chakravarty
Published by: Hawakal Publishers
ISBN: 978-8119858316
Radha Chakravarty’s debut poetry collection, Subliminal, invites readers into a world where the small and seemingly mundane objects of life are infused with profound meaning. It examines, with keen attention, the routine and minutiae of everyday life, bringing to our notice what is often overlooked. Her introspective style allows for a delicate exploration of personal experiences, nudging us to find the beauty and complexity hidden in the mundane.
“With invisible hypnotic
force,
Like Pied Piper’s magic
flute,
They draw us to the
glittering river’s edge
Where illusion beckons
and lures us in,
Until, entranced, we
take the plunge
And drown in the depths our own desire.”
 |
| Radha Chakravarty |
These lines from the title poem Subliminal (Hawakal Publishers), tucked in the middle of the book, capture the essence of the collection: the poet encourages us to look beyond appearances and delve into the depths of our core. While the poems can be read easily in one sitting, returning to them allows readers to appreciate their ambiguity and engage more deeply with their layered meanings.
The poems in this collection highlight the contrast between surface impressions and the underlying truths that lie beneath. The theme of appearance versus reality recurs throughout her poems as we journey through the pages of her book. It is clear from the very first poem Memories of Loss where the poet reflects on beautiful moments that conceal deeper, painful stories.
“In the hiss of logs in
fire,
The sighing of wood in
vanished trees
In the butterfly’s bold,
bright wings,
The trace of silken
cocoon dreams
In the cracked, patched
earth,
The yearning for a lost monsoon.’
 |
| Chaitali Sengupta |
Chakravarty's collection is rich with women-centred poems that explore themes of voice, freedom, body, and desire. Poems like Designs in Kantha, River/Woman, That Girl, The Homecoming delve into the legacies of our foremothers, the ‘rustle’ of their ‘sari aanchal, whispering a lifetime of stories, entwined in the still shining threads.’ (Legacy) The poems subtly reveal the profundity hidden in the seemingly banal and ubiquitous scenes of everyday life for traditional Bengali women.
In her poem The Casket of Secret Stories, Chakravarty conjures the image of quintessential Bengali women who hold the paaner bata-bell metal casket, once filled with their grandmother's gossip—spicy rumors of desire, heartbreak, longing, and loss. This casket contained rolled lime-smeared paan, betel leaf flavored with supuri, lavanga, elaach, and sometimes a dash of dokta, forbidden tobacco laden with sin. The poem captures a mouthwatering ritual, a daily rite of chewing with relish upon the secret morsels of women's inner lives, revealing the rich tapestry of their experiences and emotions. Through her nuanced observations, Chakravarty transforms ordinary moments into reflections of strength, resilience, and rich emotional landscapes. The lines from Designs in Kantha bear witness to this.
‘Years of laughter,
heartache, bliss,
Tears and yearning,
rage, despair-
worked by artful needle
into
guileless fictions of
innocence,
Pure and tender baby love.’
In this beautiful collection, Chakravarty delves into the lives of women from Indian mythology, creating some of her most powerful poems. Her tone is nostalgic, yet the figures of Ahalya, Sita, and Khana—the legendary Bengali woman astrologer—are portrayed with strength, resilience, and an astonishing spirit. In her poem, Ahalya’s Awakening Ahalya reflects poignantly, saying,
‘No one heard my silent
screams.
None heeded my wordless
plea
when I tried to set the
story right.
Year after year, age
after age,
with the patience of a
rock, I waited...
But only to find that
for women,
even in this new,
fast-advancing world,
not much has really
changed.’
These lines compel us to pause and recognize that, even today, women are often still expected to serve as faceless support. Chakravarty’s lines invite us to reflect inward and compel us to consider the ongoing struggles that women still endure for recognition and identity, challenging us to confront these enduring inequalities.
One of the most intriguing aspects of her book is her experimentation with challenging poetic forms, including Fibonacci poems, Skinnies, and sonnets.
The themes of
displacement, violence, and loss resonate deeply in Chakravarty's work. She
crafts a poignant narrative about relocation after partition of India and the
intense yearning for belonging in poems like Borderlines and Refugee.
Through her evocative rhymes, she explores the complex emotional experiences of
those uprooted from their homes, navigating the intricate landscape of identity
and longing for a sense of home. Here are a few lines from her poem Borderlines-
‘Now, barbed wire cuts
the land
In two, splicing lives and loves, tearing
Memories into shreds of pain.
Where grass once grew, hate has taken root,
The green earth stained red with rage and
blood.’
In contrast to such distress and disconnection, Chakravarty longs for peace ‘that descends with a sudden shower of rain, greening the earth after a drought. (Peace Process, reminding us of Tagore's timeless lines from his song Borisho Dhora Majhe Santiro Bani. She describes a peace that arrives unexpectedly, amidst ‘the noise and bustle, sweat and blood, wear and tear of everyday lives.’ This yearning captures her desire for tranquillity to break through the chaos of existence, the rising hatred dividing humanity and nations.
Poems like Pandemic in Delhi, Another Exodus, 2020 and Message in a Bottle are crafted during the bleak period of COVID-19, reflecting the harsh realities of that time. Through their poignant imagery and themes, these works capture the feelings of isolation, loss, and uncertainty that permeated daily life during the pandemic, offering a profound commentary on the struggles faced by individuals and communities.
Chakravarty’s simple
words make her poetry accessible to all readers. Her remarkable collection
gently studies how simple experiences grow in meaning.
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