TEN INDIAN CLASSICS: Selections from ‘Selected Ghazals and Other Poems’ by Mir Taqi Mir
Extract from the work of Mir Taqi Mir: Mir’s poetry abounds in bawdiness, the pain and enjoyment of life, instances of homosexuality, Sufi themes, close and wise observation of the world, and insistence on man’s dignity. Translated by: Shamsur Rahman Faruqi
Where are the photographs Ma? A ghazal by Pragya Mittal
Poetry by Pragya Mittal: ‘Whatever the heart carries is buried in the jargon of technology. / A button of delete, with a noise of take-off, finishes a gallery.’
Gentle Ustads: Six poems by John Copley Alter
Six poems by John Copley Alter: ‘Three ages ago you were / wrestling with mortality, my brother. / Today you are open in my mind like / a score of music, a keyboard, waiting.’
‘Is this what the desperate call a life?’ Four ghazals by Amrit Lal “Ishrat” Madhok
Ghazals by Amrit Lal “Ishrat” Madhok, translated from Urdu by Karan Madhok: ‘Are we mere companions, or do we swim / Together in the fountains of heaven, waters blue?’
Bena Sareen, winner of the Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize, speaks about her latest honour and the “huge responsibility” of designing a memorable literary cover. By Chittajit Mitra