Only the Soul Knows How to Sing: Poetry of Kamala Das
Written by Kamala Das
Reading designed by Dr. Omkar Bhatkar
NCPA Library in collaboration with Metamorphosis Theatre and Films
Kamala Das was born in 1934 in India into an artistic family with a father who was the managing editor of Mathrubhumi and a mother who was a much-respected poetess. She is noted for her honest poems and other writings that cover a wide range of issues. Das’s taboo-breaking work explores themes of love and betrayal, the corporeal and the spiritual while celebrating female sexuality and remaining deeply rooted in the poet’s ancestral tradition and landscape. In English, she published six collections of poetry in her lifetime including Summer in Calcutta (1965), The Descendants (1967), The Old Playhouse and Other Poems (1973), Encountering Kamala (2007) and her autobiography, My Story (1976). She was recognised with many literary prizes, including the Sahitya Akademi and the Vayalar awards.
A rigorous selection from her oeuvre—six published volumes and other uncollected and previously unpublished poems, published by Penguin Classics in 2014, Kamala Das: Selected Poems offers a unified perspective on her poetic achievement. ‘Only the Soul Knows How to Sing: Poetry of Kamala Das’ is a poetic experience designed by Dr. Omkar Bhatkar using movement, music, and visual aesthetics along with the text.
Admission on a first-come-first-served basis.