WHERE THE HEART DWELLS: Poems by Surinder Geet

Description

The apparent simplicity and optimism of Surinder Geet’s poetry is quite deceptive and her poetry is far more finely nuanced than is immediately apparent. Calm and gentle as the soft swells of water on the surface, it beats an irresistible melody as the crystal-clear stream of her words turns into a stormy torrent over barely visible rocks and stones under the water. A poet with a gentle sensibility, she yet has the courage to touch on the most difficult and sensitive of issues. The undertones of joy and sorrow, love and separation, longing and belonging touch a chord with anyone who reads them. Her poems deliver a powerful message of equality, not just for women, but for all marginalized sections, who are oppressed by the dominant centre. She believes that poetry can herald a change to usher in revolution and tells the poets to be truthful and envision a more humane world.

Straddling the spaces of both her native village in Punjab and a modern city in Canada effortlessly, she has an equal sense of belonging in both. Her poetry has reached audiences through both Shahmukhi and Gurmukhi scripts and has a wide readership not just in Punjabi but in Hindi and English translation as well. The present collection of poems has been selected from her anthologies to present glimpses into the extent and appeal of her craft.

Hina Nandrajog and Hartej Kaur Bal, friends from student days, perfectly complement each other in translation work and have tried to paint Surinder Geet’s poems into English with a tender brush yet in deep strokes – just like her poetry.