HCSHR 6:01 - Daipayan Nair, tilt of the winnowing fan

 

tilt of the winnowing fan by Daipayan Nair. Hawakal Publishers Private Limited. 70 B/9 Amritpuri, East of Kailash, New Delhi 65 33/1/2 K B Sarani, Mall Road, Calcutta 80. ISBN: 978-93-91431-86-0 (paperback) Price: INR 350 | USD 14.99, p 107. 

Reviewed by Pravat Kumar Padhy

In his collection tilt of the winnowing fan, the poet Daipayan Nair, wishes to unveil the colour of warmth and freshness. His goal is evident in the haiku which provides the title of his collection:

            tilt

of the winnowing fan …

sunrise

The poet is matured in his manifestation when he infuses aesthetic feeling into poetry and rekindles the art of poetic depth (yugen).

            waiting

for the high tide …

our footprints

In the above haiku he reinvents the essence of life and the beauty of nature. It unfolds the reality of creation and scales closeness with nature.

The socio-economic aspects of society have been portrayed in many of his senryu.  The insightful and penetrating observations (ugachi) of the poet are worth noting. Consider the following poem:

train journey —

a child beggar plays drums

on his ribcage

The irony is expressed through the word ‘ribcage’ which directs the reader’s attention to the grim situation of some children in society. Similarly, with satire, he picturizes the ‘busted tyre’ in a slum area as a metaphor for economic conditions and poverty:

slum traffic

rolling a busted tyre

down the lane

Below, Nair is engaged in interacting with himself observing the butterfly and sunflower. There is a sense of zen awareness in line 3:

the dragonfly

on a sunflower

… till I give up 

Similarly, the morning glory symbolizes strength and hope. There is a subtle ‘white space’ when he narrates ‘smiles until she doesn’t.’

morning glory —

she smiles until

she doesn’t

Like flowers, everyone should continue to radiate fragrance in the form of devotional duty for others.  Blending with simplicity, and symbolism, the poet portrays poetic sensibility and optimism:

daisy bloom —

the first window I open

every morning

Equally, away from the crowded urban life, Nair has longing for the people living in tribal areas embedded with natural beauty. He explores the cultural entity of the people of north-east India.

 

tribal village —

hearing my neighbour sing

in her tree house

her young feet

in between the clapping

of bamboo sticks

Few amongst many, he attempts to blend science into the poetic domain. Nair exhibits his emotional impulse to search for his grandma and refers to the most advanced James Webb Space Telescope:

webb telescope —

I still can’t locate

my grandma

It is tough to infuse humour (okashimi ) with perfection. Through skillful cadence, Nair often displays wittiness:

weekend special —

dad mistimes

his omelette flip

long phone call —

the smell of burnt rice

from the kitchen

The poet is at times sensual in his poetic creation. One can visualize the art of images portrayed with dignity and respect. This is one way sublime sensual expressions are created with juxtaposition.

our first date —

a corn seller fans

the burning coal

Nair cites the Indian culture related to festivals and rituals and beautifully blends ‘Indianness’ in haiku writing. The craft of transforming the words into a rhythmic entity is his forte as seen in the following haiku:  

 

festive day —

the cowbell rings

at every shop

Pitri Paksha

my offering caws

across the sky

The haiku, ‘herbarium—’ is one of Nair’s brilliant creations. What a pragmatic way to express the demanding global issues related to climate and ecology through minimalist literature!

herbarium —

only the name

remains

Nair is gifted indeed when he pens the innocence of child psychology in words:

gift shop —

a child asks the teddy bear

its name

The concluding ku leaves an imprint of the assimilation of humanity with the epiphany found in the beauty of the twilight sun:

adjusting the veil

she dips her pitcher

into the sunset

To a common man, senryu appears to be easier to write. But to leave an imprint in the readers’ memory, it must have the inherent essence and brilliance. 

Nair’s citation of journals could have been included separately within an acknowledgement section instead of with the poems on every page. Barring a few poems that look a bit telling, the poet tries to uplift the essence of poetry in this collection. One can observe how small things around you can transform into a moment of joy and remembrance. The poet is true to himself. With his exceptional classic haiku, Daipayan Nair accomplishes poetry as a vase of flowers with flairs of fragrance. His attempt creates a rewarding journey for his reader.

*****

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