Pluto: Poems

by Gulzar

'Pluto lost its status as a planet only recently. Seeing Pluto sad on being rejected thus, my heart sinks. It is so far away, so tiny, so all my pint-sized poems I gift to it,' says Gulzar. In this exquisite collection of short poems, Gulzar addresses his pet themes - relationships, his relationship with God, Nature, Time, the art of poetry - with characteristic wit and brevity, and the uncommon ability to find meaning in the mundane. The bleakness of these verses on man's violence against Nature, religious fundamentalism, physical illness and spiritual turbulences are leavened by an undertone of optimism. In Gulzar's work, even the darkest moments are filled with light; hope never gives way to despair. Beautifully rendered into English by Nirupama Dutt - and including, for the first time in a volume of his poetry in English, a collection of the poet's own sketches - this is a collection to savour and treasure.

Genres: Poetry

147 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2015

Reviews

[zahraa · Rating 3 out of 5]

the poems don’t rhyme which was 😐 and most weren’t meaningful, except for a handful which really was deep, the poems are also very short hence easy to read through (i read the translated eng version)

[Ashok Krishna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just imagine this – you are blindfolded and led into a flower garden with so many exotic flowers of varied colors and shapes. The whole garden is a sight of absolute beauty. But, you are blindfolded and left to rely on your guide to realize the beauty of the garden. Now, your experience of this garden is limited to the capability of your guide to put in words what is in front of you both. If the guide happens to be a person of elevated taste, a keen sense of aesthetics and capable of efficient communication, you are lucky to relish the garden. On the other hand, if the guide is a sloppy communicator, all that you can get to know about the garden is some mundane description.

The same thing happened to me as I ventured into the world of Hindi poetry of Gulzar. This Gulzar – meaning ‘Flower Garden’ – deserves to be termed one of the best Hindi poets of all time. He even deserves to be called as one of the best poets of all time in the entire world, but I am not a capable judge in such matters. Now, my first experience of Hindi poetry happened to be the work of Gulzar, translated into English by Pavan K.Varma, a capable writer himself. With my knowing only a smattering of Hindi then, I had to fully rely on Pavan Varma to bring out the beauty of Gulzar’s poetry in its full glory and Pavan Varma did oblige me in excellent fashion.

Later I went on to read more of Gulzar’s works, some translated by Pavan Varma, some others by Rina Singh, before finally managing to read the poems directly in the language in which they were written (Hindi), thus removing the blindfold from my eyes and getting a direct experience of the ‘garden’. Pavan Varma did an excellent job, and Rina Singh too did pull her weight to an appreciable extent. Having gone through all such translations, I found this translation by Nirupama Dutt to be a little disappointing. If you are a person who realizes the crucial role a translator plays – not just translating the words from one language to another, but ensuring their spirit stays the same – you will understand what I am trying to convey.

The poems all remain beautiful and full of Gulzar’s magic without doubt. The ability of this poetic genius to weave poems out of seemingly mundane, boring events of the day-to-day life is astonishing. He has this gift of portraying even the most banal of things in the most beautiful way – be it a single dry leaf rolling in the dirt, a tree swaying in the breeze, or the plight of those unfortunate souls who spend their entire lives on footpaths. The joy of love, the pangs of separation, the pathos of betrayal, the bliss of parenthood, respect for nature, concern for the environment – his themes form a very vast repertoire.

However, many of the poems in this book lack the usual vigor and magic of Gulzar and I can blame only the translator for the same. Some of the poems give you a sense of déjà vu and you would end up realizing your having already read those poems in other translations. And when you compare the translations, you would find that this translation lacks that magical dust to make these letters sparkle in front of your eyes.

But, the translation is not entirely bad. Nirupama Dutt has done her best in capturing the essence and beauty in many of the poems. May be I am a little biased, having already read the translations by Pavan Varma, which to me seemed to convey the beauty in those poems more clearly. A good treat to the fans of poetry, Gulzar’s especially, though not the very best of translations!

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'd love to pick this book again and go through random poems. If you like Gulzar Sahab or if you like poetry then this is worth it.

[Tim Poston · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot read Hindi, and I am usually sorely disappointed by English translations from Indian languages.
Translating poetry is the most impossible of all.

Here is proof that it is worth the attempt.
I will not attempt to analyse the excellence, only quote:

To analyse a poem
Is to strip the metaphor-petals
Of a rose in full bloom,
Until only the word-stems remain
With little more than thorns.

A fragrance lingers on the hand
Some of it lost to the breeze
The poem now resonates
Like an empty vessel, cold.

[Prajakta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always been in awe with the Poems and Lyrics penned down by Gulzar and was eager to read this book.
The poems in this book have the poet's special charm of seeking the Magic out of the Mundane!
✨
The poems are about various things such as Relationships, Nature and Time. The one thing that oozes out of Gulzar's poetry is Hope! There's always light lingering beyond the darkness!
A quick and beautiful book of poems for people loving tender works of art!
A star less in the ratings just because I felt some things were lost in the translation.

[Vinay Leo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review at A Bookworm's Musing: http://wp.me/p2J8yh-2Or

For me, this book seems his best. I’ve read most of his books, and I hope he writes more soon. The blurb of this book says, “In Gulzar’s work, even the darkest moments are filled with light; hope never gives way to despair.” And that to me sums it up perfectly. This is a book I shall read over and over again.

[Aathira Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful collection of poetry. Gulzar weaves magic.

[Sanskruti]

Just Fantastic

[Shreela Sen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gulzar is my favourite lyricist, (In Indian (Hindi) Movie industry, songs are written by a different person, composed by a different person & sung by a different set of "playback singers". Lately, established singer-songwriters are doing it too,...)
This is the first book of his I purchased, & it is classic Gulzar (Quirky, abstract, some poems melancholy & some poems fun & some really matter-of-fact, & lyrical flow suddenly broken by everyday, ordinary words ... typical Gulzar style). Therefore, 5 stars.

[Kinjal Parekh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry, but this book is lost in translations. I am 99% sure these poems are the best when read/written in Hindi (1% as a benefit of doubt that I might be wrong given I haven't read the original one YET). But, the lost in translation bit is felt very strongly as I read them. I'll maybe go for the original book than translations for this one atleast.

[Bharat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply awesome writing

[Siddharth Arora Sahar · Rating 5 out of 5]

=

[Mangesh Vanjari · Rating 5 out of 5]

गुल़जार साबकी बेहतरीन नज़्मोंकी एक खूबसूरत किताब. एक यादगार सफर.

[Apoorv · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gulzaar Sahab has a unique style of poetry. The way in which he personifies abstract things truely makes them alive.

[Naveen Verma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is there anything left to be said in his praise? One of the excellent writer in today's time. All i can say is his poetry is surreal. Nothing I can say which haven't been said.