Life Inspires

  I am your past, not the kind that hits you with a blast of wistful nostalgia when you dip the coconut cookie into a sweet sea of chai - your mamma's way, you realise, has become yours now. I don't bring an unexpected smile to you with the memory of a silly antic, a stupid joke. I am not that clown of a friend, the one of whom no one remembers much, except the jokes. I won't cradle you with the memories of a love cherished, though unowned, one that lingered, till it finally faded. And then nothing could bring it back, not even the warmth that being loved so fills you with.  You keep me locked in nested boxes. You know that I am not a threat because pasts can't hurt, at least not in any tangible way. You fear me, yet keep me close and when you feel inadequate, you peek at me with a smug smile. But, I came at a cost. First published on Red Fez  in May 2022

Vibha with Bharati Malhotra (Cover Artist and Illustrator)(Left) and Poonam Bhalla (Illustrator)(Right) Vibha Malhotra’s book of prose poetry, titled Loveflakes: Memories of Mirages , published by Hawakal Publishers, was launched on April 30th at Kunzum Bookstore, Basant Lok, Vasant Vihar. Eminent poet and recipient of the 2018 Tagore Literary Prize, Kiriti Sengupta, introduced and initiated the event. Editor and Theatre Artist Somudranil Sarkar initiated the conversation with Vibha about her creative process and her thoughts on accessibility or inaccessibility of poems. The discussion also veered around the choice of the topic – ‘Love’ – in times when people are increasingly using poetry to raise questions about the current state of affairs.