Who says kitchen is where a woman belongs? Meet Vinati Bhola who is 25 years old and hails from Delhi is a perfect example of beauty with brains. She is a lawyer by profession but that’s not all about her. She’s one of the most popular modern day poets who is celebrated by platforms like Terribly Tiny Tales and Scribbled Stories for her amazing poetry. According to her she falls back on poetry, time and again to keep up with the monotony of life. Vinati is about to launch her first collection of poems ‘Udaari’ very soon. ‘Udaari’ is an unbridled downpour of love, madness, chaos and calm that gradually sweeps you off your feet at the end.” It is indeed a big achievement for a girl who once wrote poetry just out of her teenage sloppiness. She has a massive following of more than 20k followers on Instagram and she seems to be unstoppable!
As Vinati says, “In a world that never fails to bring down the wild and free it takes courage to be a ridiculous dreamer”. We see the strength as well as the softness in her writings all together which is indeed very much necessary for today’s generation. Her work has already been published in various Indian and international anthologies, and she has also collaborated with platforms like Terribly Tiny Tales, Scribbled Stories and Youth Ki Awaz.
Read her writings on Youth Ki Awaz here
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In conversation with Vinati :
1. What is poetry to you and how much important is it for our society?
Poetry is like meditation for me and a way of releasing stress, and that feeling of ecstasy which brews in my chest after I finish a piece of work. It is absolutely addictive. As Mary Oliver says, “Poetry is a life-cherishing force. For poems are not words, after all, but fires for the cold, ropes let down to the lost, something as necessary as bread in the pockets of the hungry.”
2. Can you describe the time when you first realized that you wanted to be a poet?
For me, it was not an overnight decision. It was a slow, gradual but a beautiful process. Though I’ve been writing since the age of thirteen, it was only when I stepped into Law College, I took this hobby to a serious level. It is almost hard to believe that I’m about to launch my first collection of poems ‘Udaari’. I’d never imagined that something which started as a result of teenage sloppiness would turn out to be an important part of who I am today. I’m just glad I did not stop.
3. How does a poem begin for you, with an idea, a form or an image?
Every poem or every piece that I write has its own beginning. At the back of my mind, I constantly look for inspiration. There are times when I wake up in the middle of the night, half asleep just to jot down an idea or a thought that popped up in my head out of nowhere. I think this is the reason why writers are a weird bunch of people.
4. Who among Rabindranath Tagore, Robert Frost and Rudyard Kipling is your favorite and whose work has inspired you the most and why?
If I have to name a few, I’d say Mary Oliver, Jalaluddin Rumi and Charles Bukowski are my favorites and have always inspired me. What I love about them is that, they have an entirely different and distinct way of writing. Mary Oliver is famous for seeking inspiration from nature; Rumi’s work is so much about love and healing that begins from within and Bukowski was one man who had this amazingly raw and hard-hitting way with words. These are my go-to poets whenever I need some inspiration.
5. What do you try to communicate through your poetry?
Of all the things, I like to communicate moments which seemingly appear insignificant but are actually not. Every poem that I write is based more on empathy than experience.
6. Is there any difference between the old age poets and the modern day young poets? If yes, what and which one do you prefer personally?
Yes, there is a lot of difference when it comes to the style and structure of poetry writing. I don’t want to be biased but of course, I prefer a more relaxed and flexible form of writing which most of the modern day contemporary poets also promote through their work.
7. What was your first poem about and how did you come up with it?
I was thirteen when my parents had informed me that we were moving to a new city and I was absolutely shattered. I remember curling up in a chair and crying incessantly over the thought of leaving my friends and starting afresh. So, I took a pen and paper and began writing. It turned out to be an incredibly silly poem but that is how it all began, my ardent and unparalleled love for poetry.
8. There are many forms of poetry, among them which one is your favorite and which form do you mainly work on?
I have tried a gazillion forms during my blogging days in college. Haiku, a three-lined Japanese form of poetry, is one form which I deeply adore. But presently, I’m more inclined towards the simple free style of micro poetry writing.
9. Is there anything memorable you would like to share with us?
The time I first saw my work and my name published, it was an overwhelming experience and a much needed confidence booster. It happened in 2012 where I got first published in two poetry books.
10. Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
I hope I keep growing as a poet. There is so much more to learn and I don’t want to lose this voice that I’ve found amidst the deafening chaos of this mad world.
11. Any message you would like to give to others?
Something which I’d written way back, to pick myself up while going through a low phase: Be a wildflower. grow wherever your heart beats. This quote has always picked me up and helped me to stand on my feet again, no matter how hard the situation was and I’m sure our readers would draw similar inspiration from it.
