Dussehra brings nerdy news...

Over 18 months ago, I went to Portugal for a writing residency. The residency was in the southwestern part of the country. The afternoon that I reached, the director drove a bunch of us to see eucalyptus forests. Most of the eucalyptus trees were being replaced with oak trees. That very trip sparked the idea for my upcoming chapbook of poems, Beyond the Scent of Sorrow.

Exactly a week from today, Beyond the Scent of Sorrow will be launched in New York as part of Freedom Week NYC. I am told that poets and photographers can beautifully express what victims cannot or do not have the chance to convey. Along with my book, renowned photographer Kay Chermush’s images of trafficking will be on display. I am very excited, proud, and humbled to be a part of this humane event.

Though the launch is a week away, Beyond the Scent of Sorrow is available for advance purchase online in the United States and India.

To buy in the US, click here:

To buy in India, click here:

About this chapbook

Beyond the Scent of Sorrow delves into the challenges faced by women on a global level. The eucalyptus trees in southwest Portugal are used as an archetype to symbolically elicit the challenges women face in today’s world. Boldly, the poems, which are lyrical, literal, short, and succinct, profess the unkind capabilities of mankind.

Advance praise for Beyond the Scent of Sorrow

“Sweta's poetic voice flows like water smoothing and shaping stones. With great skill she uncovers, sometimes tenderly and other times more forcefully, the shroud of fog surrounding the feminine archetype. With metaphorical comparisons to the strength of the olive tree, in particular, she has created and nurtured a garden, a wordscape, in which trust and healing can flourish.”

—Nick Purdon, author of The Road-shaped Heart

“Sweta Srivastava Vikram holds her work close. Fold it one way, a poem of loss appears. Fold it yet again for a poem of longing. Her work is as structurally sound as the elements. It soars with anticipation. In Beyond the Scent of Sorrow the author reveals lovely and powerful poems that will long linger.”

—Doug Mathewson, Editor Blink-Ink

Here is the invite to the formal event: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=220952937963646.

I would love to see you on Thursday, October 13

The Ceeflat

988 Manhattan Avenue, between Huron and India Streets

Greenpoint, Brooklyn, NY

Time: 7:00-9:00 p.m.

$10 at the door

It promises to be a fun evening of poetry and photography! And more importantly, your presence can help make a change! Let’s fight human trafficking, together!

More until next time,

Xoxo

Copyright © 10.06.2011

“The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who cannot read them.” ~ Mark Twain

Learn about colors with poetry

Dear all,

Thirteen months ago, I signed my first, meaningful book contract with Modern History Press. Today the final product is ready. The hint of autumn in the air brings my new chapbook of poems,

“Kaleidoscope: An Asian Journey of Colors.”

The book is available for purchase in: US, UK and everywhere else in the world!

About the book: The book delves into the implication and philosophy of colors from a Hindu woman's point of view, from birth until death. The color she adorns herself with almost depicts the story of her life. Expressed through different poetic and verbal forms, each color in the book has its own tone and is specific to different age groups.

Reviews so far:

“In this innovative series, Sweta Srivastava Vikram re-appropriates color. Cultures and mythologies collide along the way, and the result is a chapbook that feels like a quest. In the end, the colors are a map to identity. The child’s pink tonsils or the bride’s red sari are not symbols, but rather mile markers. Like Vikram’s poems, they lead toward understanding.” – Erica Wright, Senior Poetry Editor, Guernica

“Vikram’s wordsmithing is outstanding. I have read much poetry and have never seen such creativeness as that of this author. She allows her words to flow with rhythm and deepness. The wisdom that comes through her is beyond any I’ve seen.” – Irene Watson, Reader Views. To read the full review, click here.

“This chapbook is the dazzling display of a poet who teases us with fresh imagery and delicate linguistic craftsmanship.” – Orchid Tierney, Editor, REM Magazine, New Zealand. To read the full review, click here.

Thank you all for your support, encouragement, love, and warm-fuzzy notes!

More until next time,

Xoxo

Copyright © 09. 09. 2010

Are you living with bitchier and dumber?

Look around the room. I mean that figuratively. You will definitely find one person who is dumb and bitchy in your friend circle or family or in your universe of acquaintances. If nowhere else, at least in the world of politics.

The kind of person, who irrespective of their age, gender, or race stirs up trouble. The reason? My guess is as good as yours: either to gain attention or just for the heck of it because their watch has way too many unaccounted for minutes. If BAU folks from the show Criminal Minds were to describe this character, they would say, “This person might come across as classy, but is truly insecure and jealous of his or her own surroundings. Money can’t buy class. The only way such people can exist is by dramatizing smallest of scenarios and purposefully belittling others. They are ignorant and presumptuous. They have minimal to no confidence in their personality. They shadow others’ opinions and rarely have their own individual ideas. You have seen them in your rooms, parks, or television sets.” I hope Hotch (The BAU team’s boss on the show) is pleased to read this description and offers me a job.J

Basically, these are the people whose butts enter spaces where they don’t belong. I recently read on CNN.com that a nondenominational church in Gainesville, Florida has planned to host, “International Burn a Quran Day” on the ninth anniversary of September 11^th terrorist attacks on the United States. They believe Islam is the religion of the “devil.”

No one can or should ever forget what happened on 9/11. Innocent lives were lost. It’s changed the world we live in, and I just don’t mean in NYC or the US. The December 2001 attack on the Indian parliament was called India’s 9/11 and the parliament, Ground Zero. And reports show that it was again Muslim terrorists that carried out the attacks in India too.

But does that give this church the right to do what they are thinking of doing? Can one inhumane act be responded with another of the same kind? Why hold the entire religion and Muslim community responsible for those fundamentalists? Not every Muslim promotes such heinous crimes. Such suppositions and people fall under the category of “bitchier and dumber” just like those bunch of people in your personal lives who we discussed earlier in the post.

Nations and continents have their own social and economical issues to deal with (poverty, illiteracy, hunger, crime etc.), but sometimes they choose to spend their energy and resources on wrong venues. Hatred can only birth hatred. I am no saint, and I am still very upset about 9/11. But I believe it’s wrong to assume that every Muslim in this world is an extremist looking to kill a non-Muslim. If you have decided to turn your brains into a vestigial organ, at least have a heart! Maybe your heart will show you the true troubles.

Based on the issues consuming India and Africa, a poet from Zimbabwe, Mbizo Chirasha and I have created a poetry collection (published by Cyberwit 2010), “Whispering Woes of Ganges & Zambezi.” While Mbizo uses free verse, I delve into Haikus to highlight our points. The book came about because of our frustration with the system and basically politicians minding everybody else’s but their own business!

It’s available for purchase in India and the US (Folks in the tri-state area, I have a few copies for purchase in case you want to save on your shipping costs).

So, support an end to “bitchier and dumber” and get your copy today! And until your copy arrives, pl. read my first American interview related to "Because All Is Not Lost."

More until next time,


Xoxo



Copyright © 08.12.2010

“You may fool all the people some of the time, you can even fool some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all the time.” Abraham Lincoln