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        • Chapter-4 Dr. Vicky Gilpin
      • On Poetry & Poets by Abhay K.
      • Poetry of Kamla Das –A True Voice Of Bourgeoisie Women In India by Dr.Shikha Saxena
      • Identity Issues in the Poetry of Nissim Ezekiel by Dr.Arvind Nawale & Prashant Mothe*
      • Nissim Ezekiel’s Latter-Day Psalms: His Religious and Philosophical Speculations By Dr. Pallavi Srivastava
      • The Moping Owl : the Epitome of Melancholy by Zinia Mitra
      • Gary Soto’s Vision of Chicano Experiences: The Elements of San Joaquin and Human Nature by Paula Hayes
      • Sri Aurobindo: A Poet By Aju Mukhopadhyay
      • Wordsworthian Romanticism in the Poetry of Jayanta Mahapatra: Nature and the Reflective Capabilities of a Poetic Self by Paula Hayes
      • Reflective Journey of T.S. Eliot: From Philosophy to Poetry by Syed Ahmad Raza Abidi
      • North East Indian Poetry: ‘Peace’ in Violence by Ananya .S. Guha
    • 2014-2015 >
      • From The Hidden World of Poetry: Unravelling Celtic mythology in Contemporary Irish Poetry Adam Wyeth
      • Alchemy’s Drama: Conflict, Resolution and Poiesis in the Poetic Work of Art by Michelle Bitting
      • Amir Khushrau: The Musical Soul of India by Dr. Shamenaz
      • PUT YOUR HANDS ON ME: POETRY'S EROTIC ART by Elena Karina Byrne
      • Celtic and Urban Landscapes in Irish Poetry by Linda Ibbotson
      • Trickster at the African Crossroads and the Bridge to the Blues in America by Michelle Bitting
    • 2015-2016 >
      • Orogeny/Erogeny: The “nonsense” of language and the poetics of Ed Dorn T Thilleman
      • Erika Burkart: Fragments, Shards, and Visions by Marc Vincenz
      • English Women Poets and Indian politics
    • 2016-2017 >
      • Children’s Poetry in India- A Case Study of Adil Jussawalla and Ananya Guha by Shruti Sareen
      • Thirteen Thoughts on Poetry in the Digital Age by Mandy kAHN
    • 2017-2018 >
      • From Self-Portrait with Dogwood: A Route of Evanescence by Christopher Merrill
      • Impure Poetry by Tony Barnstone
      • On the Poets: Contributors in Context by Donald Gardner
      • Punching above its Weight: Dutch Poetry in English, a Selection, 2013-2017 by Jane Draycott
  • Print Editions


​Issue XXII November 2015
​

Edition on Contemporary Indian English Poetry

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The Enchanting Poet Issue XXII

PictureMamang Dai
A poet and novelist Mamang Dai received the state Verrier Elwin Award in 2003 for her book Arunachal Pradesh- the hidden land featuring the culture, folklore and customs of Arunachal’s different communities.  She has been featured in several national and international forums, and her poems, fiction and articles have been published in numerous journals and anthologies. In 2011 Dai was awarded the Padma Shri  for her contributions in the field of literature and education. Currently she is Member, Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission. 


from the Editor in Chief

PictureSonnet Mondal
The first Nationalist Poet of Modern India- Henry Louis Vivian Derozio is considered the father of Indian English Poetry. He wrote extensively in English and was much influenced by the English Romantic poets. Further, poets like Toru Dutt and Michael Madhusudan Dutt too wrote English verses under the influence of English Romanticism. Later, Nissim Ezekiel and A.K. Ramanujan wrote much under the influence of post-war American Poets and some British poets like Wilfred Owen. Ramanujan travelled to America in 1959 and stayed in Chicago until his death in 1993. He wrote extensively during these years. Kamala Das, another exponent of Indian English Poetry had a close fellow-feeling towards Walt Whitman and embraced Whitman’s Song of Myself  in her egalitarian outbursts-
"I am the mate and companion of people all just as
Immortal and fathomless as myself. - Song of Myself"
 
Indian English poetry- from Derozio and Toru Dutt to Nissim Ezekiel, A.K. Ramanujan and Jayanta Mahapatra to present day poets is recognized worldwide. It has come up as a form that has its own tradition, lyrical quality, approach, delivery and style.
 
This edition of The Enchanting Verses Literary Review presents an array of Indian poets for whom their lives are imperfect without poetry. I hope that this special edition of the Enchanting Verses Literary Review will be a treat for the lovers of contemporary Indian poetry in English.
​I convey my sincere thanks and gratitude to Abhay K for editing this special edition of the Enchanting Verses Literary Review. I also extend my thanks to all the contributors for contributing their works.

                                                        From The Guest Editor

PictureAbhay K
​"Indian poetry in English has a longer and more distinguished tradition than Indian fiction in English" wrote Pankaj Mishra in The Times Literary Supplement (December 3, 2004) yet I come across such questions as- "Is there Indian English? Why does an Indian poet write in English and not in one's mother tongue?" 

English occupies a vital place in contemporary India as a link language, as a language of everyday thinking and communication for millions of Indians. As a language enriched with Indian intonations and sensibilities it has evolved into Indian English- Inglish/Hinglish. Over the years India has become the third-largest English-language publisher in the world catering to a large number of readers for whom English is either the first or the second language of communication. More Indians write in English today than ever in the past. 
Indian poetry in English has a literary tradition which is approximately 200 years old. Indian poets started writing poems in English as early as 1820. "Ode--from the Persian of Half' Queez"   by Henry Derozio- an Anglo-Indian published in 1827 is considered to be the first poem in this tradition-

"Without thy dreams, dear opium,
Without a single hope I am,
Spicy scent, delusive joy;
Chillum hither lao, my boy!"

Rabindranath Tagore who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913, about a century ago, translated his own poems from Bengali into English. There are many fine poets in the post-independence period who have enriched this literary tradition over the past sixty years. 

In this special edition of The Enchanting Verses Literary Review  I have tried to give readers a flavour of contemporary Indian poetry in English bringing together the established poets as well as the new voices. I have not included a few obvious names who are part of every other anthology of Indian poetry in English.

Hope you'll love reading this special edition of The Enchanting Verses as much as I have loved it bringing to life. 

Read Poems by Abhay K

Picture
Henry Louis Vivian Derozio

Editor's Choice

Anju Makhija
E.V.Ramakrishnan
Kavita A. Jindal

All Poets & Poems

A.J. Thomas
Akhil Katyal
Anand Thakore
Arundhathi Subramaniam
Bibhu Padhi
Gopikrishnan Kottoor
K.Srilata
Kynpham Sing Nongkynrih
Mani Rao
Manohar Shetty
Michelle Cahill
Mustansir Dalvi
Nabina Das
Nandini Sahu
Nitoo Das
Priya Sarukkai Chabria
Rabindra K Swain
Ranu Uniyal
Rizio Yohannan Raj
RK Biswas
Sampurna Chattarji
Smita Agarwal
Sudeep Sen
Sumana Roy
Sukrita Paul Kumar
Vinita Agarwal
Abhay K (Guest Editor-India Special Edition)
Sonnet Mondal (Editor in Chief-Enchanting Verses)


Essays​

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Poetry of Kamla Das –A True Voice Of Bourgeoisie Women In India
​
by Dr.Shikha Saxena
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Wordsworthian Romanticism in the Poetry of Jayanta Mahapatra: Nature and the Reflective Capabilities of a Poetic Self 

by Paula Hayes

Books in Focus

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Midnight Diary,Bibhu Padhi , Authorspress,
New Delhi,2015,ISBN 978-93-5207-012-1,
Rs.295/-($15),Pp149


Reviewed by Jaydeep Sarangi 
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​The Rosary of Latitudes
Prose and Poetry
By Usha Akella
Transcendent Zero Press,
ISBN-13: 978-0-9962704-0-3
200 pp.


Words by Keki Daruwalla and Ravi Shankar

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​VerseVille (formerly The Enchanting Verses Literary Review) © 2008-2025    ISSN 0974-3057 Published from India. 

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  • Home
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    • Media Coverages
    • Copyright Notice
    • VerseVille Blog
  • Submissions
    • Poetry and Essays Guidelines
    • Book Review Guidelines
    • Research Series Guidelines
  • Masthead
  • Editions
    • 2011 Issues >
      • ISSUE-XIV November 2011
    • 2012 Issues >
      • ISSUE-XV March 2012
      • ISSUE-XVI July 2012
      • ISSUE-XVII November 2012
    • 2013 Issues >
      • ISSUE-XVIII April 2013
      • ISSUE XIX November 2013
    • 2014 Issues >
      • ISSUE XX May 2014
    • 2015 Issues >
      • ISSUE XXI February 2015
      • Contemporary Indian English Poetry ISSUE XXII November 2015
    • 2016 Issues >
      • ISSUE XXIII August 2016
      • Poetry From Ireland ISSUE XXIV December 2016
    • 2017 ISSUES >
      • ISSUE XXV August 2017
      • ISSUE XXVI December 2017
    • 2018 ISSUES >
      • ISSUE XXVII July 2018
      • ISSUE XXVIII November 2018
    • 2019 Issues >
      • ISSUE XXIX July 2019
    • 2020 ISSUES >
      • Issue XXX February 2020
      • ISSUE XXXI December 2020
    • 2021 ISSUES >
      • ISSUE XXXII August 2021
    • 2022 ISSUES >
      • ISSUE XXXIII June 2022
      • ISSUE XXXIV December 2022
    • 2023 ISSUES >
      • ISSUE XXXV August 2023
      • ISSUE XXXVI December 2023 Indian Poetry
    • 2024 ISSUES >
      • ISSUE XXXVII October 2024 Bengali Poetry
    • 2025 ISSUES >
      • ISSUE XXXVIII January 2025 Balkan Poetry
  • Collaborations
    • Macedonian Collaboration
    • Collaboration with Dutch Foundation for Literature
  • Interviews
  • Prose on Poetry and Poets
    • 2010-2013 >
      • Sylvia Plath by Dr. Nidhi Mehta >
        • Chapter-1(Sylvia Plath)
        • Chapter-2(Sylvia Plath)
        • Chapter-3(Sylvia Plath)
        • Chapter-4(Sylvia Plath)
        • Chapter-5(Sylvia Plath)
        • Chapter-6(Sylvia Plath)
      • Prose Poems of Tagore by Dr. Bina Biswas >
        • Chapter-1(Rabindranath Tagore)
        • Chapter-2(Rabindranath Tagore)
        • Chapter-3(Rabindranath Tagore)
        • Chapter-4(Rabindranath Tagore)
        • Chapter-5(Rabindranath Tagore)
        • Chapter-6(Rabindranath Tagore)
        • Chapter-7(Rabindranath Tagore)
        • Chapter-8(Rabindranath Tagore)
        • Chapter-9(Rabindranath Tagore)
      • Kazi Nazrul Islam by Dr. Shamenaz Shaikh >
        • Chapter 1(Nazrul Islam)
        • Chapter 2(Nazrul Islam)
        • Chapter 3(Nazrul Islam)
      • Kabir's Poetry by Dr. Anshu Pandey >
        • Chapter 1(Kabir's Poetry)
        • Chapter 2(Kabir's Poetry)
        • Chapter 3(Kabir's Poetry)
      • My mind's not right by Dr. Vicky Gilpin >
        • Chapter- 1 Dr. Vicky Gilpin
        • Chapter-2 Dr. Vicky Gilpin
        • Chapter-3 Dr. Vicky Gilpin
        • Chapter-4 Dr. Vicky Gilpin
      • On Poetry & Poets by Abhay K.
      • Poetry of Kamla Das –A True Voice Of Bourgeoisie Women In India by Dr.Shikha Saxena
      • Identity Issues in the Poetry of Nissim Ezekiel by Dr.Arvind Nawale & Prashant Mothe*
      • Nissim Ezekiel’s Latter-Day Psalms: His Religious and Philosophical Speculations By Dr. Pallavi Srivastava
      • The Moping Owl : the Epitome of Melancholy by Zinia Mitra
      • Gary Soto’s Vision of Chicano Experiences: The Elements of San Joaquin and Human Nature by Paula Hayes
      • Sri Aurobindo: A Poet By Aju Mukhopadhyay
      • Wordsworthian Romanticism in the Poetry of Jayanta Mahapatra: Nature and the Reflective Capabilities of a Poetic Self by Paula Hayes
      • Reflective Journey of T.S. Eliot: From Philosophy to Poetry by Syed Ahmad Raza Abidi
      • North East Indian Poetry: ‘Peace’ in Violence by Ananya .S. Guha
    • 2014-2015 >
      • From The Hidden World of Poetry: Unravelling Celtic mythology in Contemporary Irish Poetry Adam Wyeth
      • Alchemy’s Drama: Conflict, Resolution and Poiesis in the Poetic Work of Art by Michelle Bitting
      • Amir Khushrau: The Musical Soul of India by Dr. Shamenaz
      • PUT YOUR HANDS ON ME: POETRY'S EROTIC ART by Elena Karina Byrne
      • Celtic and Urban Landscapes in Irish Poetry by Linda Ibbotson
      • Trickster at the African Crossroads and the Bridge to the Blues in America by Michelle Bitting
    • 2015-2016 >
      • Orogeny/Erogeny: The “nonsense” of language and the poetics of Ed Dorn T Thilleman
      • Erika Burkart: Fragments, Shards, and Visions by Marc Vincenz
      • English Women Poets and Indian politics
    • 2016-2017 >
      • Children’s Poetry in India- A Case Study of Adil Jussawalla and Ananya Guha by Shruti Sareen
      • Thirteen Thoughts on Poetry in the Digital Age by Mandy kAHN
    • 2017-2018 >
      • From Self-Portrait with Dogwood: A Route of Evanescence by Christopher Merrill
      • Impure Poetry by Tony Barnstone
      • On the Poets: Contributors in Context by Donald Gardner
      • Punching above its Weight: Dutch Poetry in English, a Selection, 2013-2017 by Jane Draycott
  • Print Editions