Southern States
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Karnataka
'Kannada poetry is in transition'
By K.N.Venkatasubba Rao
BANGALORE, DEC. 2. When an 18-year-old boy by name Nisar Ahmed recited a Kannada poem written by him before an august gathering at the 36th All-India Kannada Sahitya Sammelan held at Kumta in 1954, Dr. Da.Ra.Bendre, an avant-garde poet and an enviable "wordsmith," in the Kannada literary world, is said to have remarked: "He is not `nissara' (unworthy) but he made his ego and contempt nissara as he is full of `saara' (worthy stuff)."
The passage of time proved Dr. Bendre's observation right, and the boy, who was destined to study geology and write poems, rose to become Prof. Nisar Ahmed and make an indelible mark as a major Kannada poet.
Now, at 65, Prof. Nisar Ahmed is preparing to release a volume of his complete works -- no mean achievement for a Kannada poet whose works have been translated into several Indian and foreign languages. The volume scheduled to be released on Monday in Bangalore.
Born into a pious Muslim family on February 5, 1936, at Devanahalli in Bangalore District, Prof. Nisar Ahmed was drawn to Kannada literature since his childhood. Encouraged by his parents, he ventured to write his first poem at the age of 13 when he was studying in high school. Supported by his father, K.S.Hyder's taste for culture and literature, and his mother Hamida Begum's penchant for discipline, he learnt to draw inspiration from all corners of the world.
As an Intermediate student in Bangalore, he came under the influence of Kannada literary stalwarts such as G.P.Rajaratnam, L.Gundappa, and V.Seetaramaiah, and earned accolades from none other than the great Ku. Vem. Pu. In 1959, he obtained his post-graduate degree in Geology from Central College, Bangalore. After teaching Geology for 35 years, he now completely devotes his time to his literary pursuits.
Prof. Nisar Ahmed has published 12 collections of poetry and five volumes of prose (including translations of Shakespeare's Othello and A Mid Summer Night's Dream) and selected poems of Pablo Neruda. He has received several awards including the State Sahitya Academy award, the Soviet Land-Nehru Award, the Vishwa Manava Award, and the Rajyotsava Award. A number of popular musical cassettes in which his poems have been recited by light musicians has created history and given a new impetus to Kannada light music. He was the Chairman of the Karnataka Sahitya Academy from 1984 to 1987.
Prof. Ahmed's greatness as a poet lies in his ability to fuse history, science, nature, politics, current affairs, and human vicissitudes with striking undertones and connotations. This can be seen in his landmark poems -- Kurigalu Saar Kurigalu, Nityotsava, Sanje Eydara Male, America, Masti, Gandhibazarina Belagu, Amma, Achara Mattu Nanu, Nadadeviye, Raman Satta Suddi, and Yella Maretiruvaga. Although he shot into fame when the Navya (modern) literary tradition was at its zenith, his poems have withstood the tests of the traditions of Kannada literature with their contemporaneous nature and their having no intellectual pretensions in content and form. His creativity has also been marked by his skill to exploit English and Persian words, and to fuse them (or juxtapose them) into suitable Kannada terms to create a fresh literary and lyrical experience.
Asked about the present state of Kannada literature, particularly poetry, Prof. Nisar Ahmed said: "There is an abysmal gap between the poetry of the past and that of the present. It dawdles between the idioms of prose and poetry and struggles to forge a new idiom of its own. The lyrical quality of Kannada poetry is gradually waning, and an analytical form of poetry is taking its place. Kannada poetry is in transition, which is likely to herald another renaissance. The future of Kannada poetry is certainly bright."
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