As a Tamilan who speaks English as a first language, Tamil literature has always felt inaccessible since it tends to be taught in Tamil, rather than in translation. This webinar has given me much-needed exposure to Sangam poetry and contemporary Tamil poets – I honestly wish I could enrol in more courses like that and widen my understanding and appreciation for our Tamil literary greats. I have so much interest in this but there are very few access points, I find. The webinar has also given me a basis for comparison, to notice the similarities/differences between Tamil literary approaches and Indian anglophone literary approaches.
As a writer, I have also begun reflecting on my own relationship with nature and space. Growing up in Singapore, untouched nature is a rarity and our mountains are instead hills. Even though we have our own tropical landscape, much of it is gone due to urbanisation and this is something many older Singaporeans mourn – most of our children know little about our flora and fauna, and are more well-versed in terms of technology and online culture. Now I feel compelled to ask myself – what does our land/state of our land say about Singapore and Singaporeans? What kinds of flowers and plants do I see on my walks around the neighbourhood? What emotions do I associate them with? Where do I find beauty in our land?
I am no poet (I’ve always gravitated towards fiction) and I am usually averse to writing poetry because my benchmark of good poetry comes from years of studying literature, which means I always feel inadequate in relation to the greats. But I think I have shed some of that fear after attending this wonderful webinar with Perundevi.
I would really love more English-medium workshops and webinars on Tamil literature.
— Prasanthi Ram; Webinar on Contemporary Tamil Poetry for English-Language Poets with Perundevi Srinivasan (PS7)
Contemporary Tamil Poetry for English-Language Poets
