About last month. Actually, an entire month. That’s how long it has been since I heard ‘em.
Words.
Words. What else do I love more than their soft, unwavering power to make things go and take shapes of wonder? Those who know me, know I am a logophile – to spot member of the community of words and not befriend them has rarely been my nature. I look at them, toy with them, sit besides them and experience their coming together to embrace love and cut cold, to heal wounds and singe memories, to muddle notions and clear cobwebs, to unfurl laughter and console whimpers, to raise empires and vanquish legacies, to befriend strangers and question bonds, to cease distances and forge connections.
And so, imagine the joy of sitting on a sprawling ground, under the clear, blue sky on a Sunday evening and hearing one speaker after another, express their emotions and experiences with the beautiful tendrils of words.
At Spokenfest in Mumbai a month ago, this happened. The vivacious Sriti Jha spoke on the yearnings for the beloved (but with a twist!) and the gorgeous Shefali Shah poked at the many nuances of being a woman (albeit with plenty of bone-ticklers 😊). The eloquent Varun Grover recited poems of the country and her many heartbeats, and the multi-talented Swanand Kirkire regaled with his new compositions, set to lilting tunes. As I heard them, loud and tender, their hurrahs hiding their disappointments, their dilemmas finding camaraderie, I felt the world turning a tad hazy around me and the words ringing more and more within a world of my own. Perhaps, words, without telling, change homes.
I not only discovered new voices and new cuisines (well, that’s a given), but also did one of my favorite things – picked a book (actually three) without seeing the title! Blind book date, if you will.
The festival witnessed some amazing performances by the speakers, spread across two days, and I would absolutely love to go there again. To see the soaring flight of words and see them tinker with the sky’s shawl is, after all, one of my favorite things to do.
SEEMITA DAS 