LET THE BIRDS CHIRP
ANTHOLOGY OF TRANSLATED POEMS OF SHAKUNTALA SHARMA
ENGLISH TRANSLATION BY RAJNI CHHABRAPRELUSION:
After soulful thanks to All-pervasive God for His choicest blessings for successful completion of my Anthology of Poems,’ Let the Birds Chirp’ trans-verted from Hindi and Rajasthani into English as target language, I would like to extend my hearty thanks to voracious readers world-wide, for continually devouring my all literary works
Bi-lingual poetess and critic Ms. Shakuntala Sharma has marked a niche in literary corridors of Hindi and Rajasthani, for more than three decades. Both of us were colleagues in Maharani Sr. Sec. School in Bikaner (Raj.) in early years of this century. We co-shared stage in many Poetry Events too. Her poems always created a deep impression on my mind. Undoubtedly, translating her poems is a matter of immense pleasure for me.
Compiling this collection has been an amusing as well as challenging experience for me. I have anthologized poems from her two Hindi Poetry Books ‘Prasfutan’ and ‘Anubhutiyaan’ and also choicest poems from her Rajasthani Poetry Book,’ Kaanchi Koonpal’
In these poems, you will find woman aspiring for self-identification, diving deep into each and every moment of life to accumulate wisdom. Some of her poems reveal deep concern over degeneration of moral values, chaos in political arena, exploitation and male dominance in society. She is equally thoughtful for maintaining ecological balance and cares for environment. She raises her voice against oppression of woman and condemns female femicide.
Love is interpreted in multifarious ways in her poems.
Love is
Dawn
Light on
Horizon
Gleam
Brightness
Morning
Ecstatic
Never sets
Never hides
In the galaxy of stars
Murmuring
( An extract from poem ‘Love’)
Hailing from Rajasthan, she has a masterly touch in her poems when she pens about cultural traditions, customs and fairs of Rajasthan. These poems have a picturesque effect.
Peep outside gatehouse
Carrying *Teej -Sawari
Moving with ornamentation
Their turbans are pink
Decorated pitcher for that great oblation
Is being carried on head by sister-in-law
In moments of trance
Her glory is pink
( An extract from poem ‘Pink City’)
Her poems are tinged with lofty goals of life and encompass virtues of love, compassion, trust, hope, self-confidence, courage, devotion and divinity. Poetess has tone of a seer and her deep philosophy, along with philanthropic bend of mind, expressed through these poems is highly commendable. I appreciate note of optimism in her poems.
Translation is a medium to know about mind set up, sentiments and views of writer composing in other languages and involves liability on the shoulders of translator to retain original fervour. It widens literary corridors, especially when it is translated into English; it opens wide avenues to get it further translated into regional languages as well as other international languages. It helps us to transcend linguistic borders and create bonds of affinity, thereby making the world stronger for the true goal of peace, equality and bliss.
I have tried my level best to capture soul of original poems and to diffuse the taste of Rajasthani literature into English translation.
I hope, you will enjoy these poems; reviews and comments from readers on global level are always a precious treasure for me.
Lastly, I extend my gratitude to the Publisher Prashant Bissa and entire editorial team for so aesthetically crafting my dream-book into reality.
Rajni Chhabra
Multi-lingual Poetess
Polyglot and Anthologist
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