For better or verse

As spoken word gains traction in the country, an Instagram page hopes to help young poets discover diverse page poetry

Although your social media feed might be flashing upcoming open mic listings, it doesn't reflect of how difficult it actually is for young poets to break into the circuit; nor does it imply that those who do get a stage perform thought-provoking poetry. But it's perhaps harder for those who prefer their words on paper only. Elaborating on these multiple gaps, 23-year-old poet Meghna Prakash, who hails from Mumbai, says, "Spoken word is easy to do these days because of the rise in venues. It isn't about contacts. And you also do not know if you've written a good poem or a mass one — you'll only learn if you know established poets." With a long-term goal in mind, Prakash along with Delhi-based poet Aakriti Kuntal started Poetry Dialogue, a literary platform, on Instagram and Facebook 12 days ago.

Poetry Dialogue's Instagram feed

The page posts works based on different categories every day. While Mondays are for Modern Poetry and Tuesdays for translated pieces, the weekend is for works of romance and Indian poetry. Their feed so far features poets including Jeet Thayil, Anna Akhamatova, Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, and Robert Louis Stevenson. But you'll also see artwork on Wednesdays: Austrian artist Egon Schiele was featured this week. "Some works are sourced online but as and when we read a poem, we bookmark it and put it up. We are also looking at including regional languages in the future," Kuntal, 27, says.

In addition to maintaining this passion project, the two co-founders will set up a detailed list of journals where young entrants can apply to get their work featured. They also plan to facilitate a dialogue between established poets and the younger ones through workshops. As Prakash concludes, "This is going to be non-commercial for a while. Poetry has become a privilege and we want to change that."

Log on to: @poetrydialogue on Instagram and Facebook

Mark this date

A poetry tournament called The Stride of My Step themed on women empowerment is open to those aged 18 to 40 years.

Submission Windon: August 1 to 16
Email: poetrytournament@gmail.com

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