THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The range of topics on which the little poets meditated were refreshingly myriad. From the unspoken grief of a well at not being able to flow and bounce in ripples like other water bodies to the engaging deliberation on the audience for poetry, the young bards who had gathered at the Vyloppilli Samskrithi Bhavan for a two-day poetry workshop, came up with promising verse. The group of 45, hailing from Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta and Kollam districts, were students of classes from high school to plus-two. They responded enthusiastically to the query whether they enjoyed the event which included interactions with veteran poets and academicians such as Sugatha Kumari, Puthussery Ramachandran and others. They chipped in with nuggets from the most interesting classes and gave examples of the new-found imagery in poetry.“Imagery will help us communicate more effectively,” said Asif Abdul Kalam, a plus- one student from Thirumala. Anupama, also a plus-one student from the city, recited her poem ‘Ente Maram’ (My Tree), in which she spoke about the mango tree that she and her grandfather planted together in their courtyard. The tree does not live to see her grandfather die a lonely death in an old age home. “My parents took me to an old age home one day where I met an old father who left his home when he found that he was a burden to his four sons. The picture of that sad old face stayed with me and when I was taking part in a poetry writing contest last year, it poured forth as a poem,” she remembers. Gokul Krishnan’s poetry was filled with the untold misery of a young heart at not being able to enjoy childhood to its fullest, for he has to rely on crutches to move about. There were also Farisa from Thiruvanathapuram and Athulya from Cherunniyoor, who had already published their collections. Athulya, a seventh standard student, writes straight-from-the-heart poems on her parents and sights around her home while Faris, a eleventh standard student, experiments with tough words and melodramatic expressions. Vilakkudy Rajendran, member secretary of Vyloppilli amskrithi Bhavan, said that the camp was a revelatory experience for the organisers as well. “Many of the students wanted us to extend the camp. They were very enthusiastic and full of doubts. Talented as they are, it is clear that children do not receive guidance or training in developing their creative writing skills,” he said. M R Thampan, director, State Language Institute, added that their keen interest was however proof that the future of Malayalam language is in safe hands. “The willingness and interest to participate in a poetry workshop is in itself noteworthy in an age when parents and children are caught in the entrance examination frenzy. There is a fair amount of talent among the younger generation and we have to nourish it,” he said. Vilakkudy Rajendran said that similar camps will be held in all districts in the state in 2012.
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