A New Poetic Impulse

(I kept on putting the world in order,but my own house was going haywire with various demands.) These lines,recited by poet Ejaz Anjum,talk about the changing nature of Mushaira. A change that embraces their ‘new’ form to bring back the audiences .

Anjum,who has been reciting at mushairas for the last 12 years,chronicles the change in poetry beautifully. “I am a madai, a hasya kavi. For me,mushaira changed when popular culture embraced it,” he says. An emcee by profession,Anjum believes that the art form is being altered to suit the common man. “First,we would only write poetry dedicated to one’s beloved. Today,we write poetry that takes that love to other people and places . Love for brotherhood,nation and character,is now most written about,” he adds. What accounts for this change,according to Anjum,is the way Urdu has been embraced in popular culture . “Even now,while talking to me in Hindi,you have used so many Urdu words. It seamlessly blends with other languages . This is the impact of Urdu in films,songs and everyday conversations,” he says.

The art form is now trying to contemporarise itself to suit the social scenario. For many listeners,this is perhaps the change that can bring back people’s interest in poetry. Shares Dr S Mukadal,who has been listening to mushairas for over 10 years now,“There are only a few poets who really stick to the undiluted use of language whilst adopting varied subjects. They get the art right – for it has a mixture of both good language and excellent content.”

Adopting the web as a medium is another measure. The website mushaira.org ,features hundreds of Urdu artists . The audio records are in the voice of the poets and some of the pieces have an English translation too. “Times are changing and we must evolve ,” says Johar Kanpuri,who has been reciting poetry for 28 years now. The website includes interactive projects like poetry contest,readers’ poetry,news,schedules and reports of mushairas and Urdu activities. Kanpuri is open to adaptation but not to the adulteration of language. “I am not saying that languages should not be mixed. But the classical Urdu – a mix of Farsi,is slowly fading from mushairas. This is not a good sign,” he says. His nazm on Saturday was embedded with inspiration from Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption stand. Titled Ianine Siyasaat Se Khitaab,the poetry tried to reach out to the audience by taking on a contemporary note.