Poetry is a style of expression which, despite crafting a surreal world for its readers, continues to keep them hooked with the feelings and experience of the real world. Similarly, the latest collection of poems by Mamta Chander, known as Turiya, called, ‘The Vast Empty’, effortlessly transports readers on an introspective journey through the vast landscapes of human emotions.
Turiya (Mamta Chander) is a Gurugram-based senior management professional with a 25-year career. Rooted in Eastern philosophy and mysticism, Turiya’s poetry is a captivating fusion of natural world inspiration and the wisdom of Rainer Maria Rilke. As a senior management professional leading a global team, Mamta Chander brings a unique perspective to her creative pursuits, highlighting the intersection of corporate leadership and poetic expression.
To learn more about Turiya’s unique style of poetry and her new collection of poems, Sonakshi Datta of GoaChronicle asked her a few questions.
What first inspired you to bridge eastern philosophy and mysticism?
I continue to be inspired by nature and the complexity and beauty that is resplendent in it. Being in nature stills the mind and brings an awareness that helps me contemplate. Out of this contemplation, a poem sometimes offers itself to be written through me. So maybe nature is the bridge, maybe I am.
What made you draw inspiration from Rainer Maria Rilke, for him to have a great influence on your poetry?
There is something transcendent about Rilke’s writing; like you are on the brink of grasping a truth that is so elusive, of remembering the wisdom that lies deep within your consciousness- like the whisper of the universe revealing it is secret to you! It is the kind of poetry that speaks to your core regardless of the theme. So, the influence is largely the kind of feeling I wanted to evoke in my readers.
Despite being in a corporate leadership role, what made you enter the world of poems?
I think the world of writing was always waiting for me, and I would have entered it no matter what my profession was. I see poetry as a sacred gift, and invitation from your consciousness asking you to spend some time with yourself. We all make time for our passion and interests – some play golf, some run, some people paint, I write poems.
What do you think, brings a poetic expression, close to the hearts of its readers?
When the reader recognizes the creative expression as an articulation of his or her own thoughts, that they were hitherto unable put to words, that is when a connection is formed. That is when the reader feels that the poem was written for them and is speaking to them. That is what endears the writing to the reader.
What makes your latest collection of poems, ‘The Vast Empty’, a ‘must-read’? What message do the poems impart?
Through these poems, I invite the readers to travel into themselves and rediscover some lost and forgotten part that gave them joy and a sense of wonder. The message is to pause, reflect and hear their inner voice. The poems are simple and easy to understand, and I wanted my readers to feel refreshed and calm when they read it. It would be wonderful if I can rekindle the joy of reading poems, or at least make them less intimidating and more accessible.
