Calcutta: A long poem

by Purushottama Lal

69 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

Reviews

[Saikat Majumdar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Calcutta: A Long Poem is a remarkable formal experiment by a poet who is steeped in classical Sanskrit poetry while also carrying on a rich personal relationship with various traditions of Anglo-American poetry. Many of the verses cluster around individuals from different cultures, idiosyncratic denizens of the megapolis. Some figures and rituals stand out, as etched in the charming essayistic interlude adorned with evocative pencil sketches: Bengali women, Rabindranath Tagore, the Bengali wedding feast, and the adda (“translated limply as free-for-all discussion”), culminating in the great Hindu carnival, the worship of the ten-armed, demon-slaying goddess Durga.

Calcutta: A Long Poem