Indian Origin Poet Wins 2014 Pulitzer Prize
Indian Origin Poet Wins 2014 Pulitzer Prize
Indian born poet Vijay Seshadri has won the Pulitzer Prize in the poetry genre for the year 2014. Yet again, this is a good incentive for India’s literary geniuses and aspiring poets. When heartening news such as this reaches young poets who are struggling to make it big, it is a positive step. Seshadri’s collection of poems entitled “3 Sections” is the winner of this prestigious poetry prize this year. The 98th Annual Pulitzer Prizes in various categories were declared by the Columbia University on 14th April, 2014. Seshadri’s award winning collection of poems examined the human consciousness in stages from birth to dementia through a powerful voice.
The voice in question echoes universal emotions of man such as compassion and humour along with darker sides such as remorselessness. It is a compelling account of the massive power of human emotions in shaping different worldviews. Seshardi is an American author and literary talent of great repute. He is currently the chair in writing at the Sarah Lawrence College located in the vibrant city of New York. He has also worked with the New Yorker in the past. Seshadri himself wonders what the result of winning the award will be for him. But it will definitely make a difference to the Indian writers and poets who are evolving as skilled and creative professionals in their field.
Seshadri himself is an ex-student of Columbia University. He will receive an award of $10,000. His volume of original verse is quite interesting. He questions how difficult it would be for a person to think of him or herself as the centre of the universe and see the world only as a replica of him or herself in one of his more thought-evoking verses. In a world where one is constantly performing to different roles, valuing originality and the true self cannot be denied. The world is in a constant state of flux and compassion is rare indeed. What is left is a human consciousness that tries to discover its true self in others and fails, because everyone is rare and unique.
Seshadri is a Bangalore born poet and he has been teaching poetry and nonfiction writing in New York for some time now. Born in India in the 1950s, he arrived to the US in his childhood years. He grew up in Columbus in the US state of Ohio. What is the value of poetry in the modern world? That is the question that can be answered if one were to see the ravages of war and destruction that are cornering humanity in different parts of the world. Poetry captures the harsh realities of life and expresses complex emotions in a simple and lucid manner. It is a wonderful release for the poet as well as the reader.
Seshdari has also won the James Laughlin Award and he has been published in several important publications such as the American Scholar and the Nation. Apart from this, his work has also been presented in noted anthologies. He has the ability to bring out strong and evocative messages from the readers through his ironical yet perceptive worldview in praise of individualism.
Seshadri has also been the recipient of numerous grants from noted organizations such as the New York Foundation for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts and several others. He is also the recipient of the MacDowell Colony’s Fellowship for Distinguished Poetic Achievement and the Bernard F Conners Long Poem Prize.
His talent lies in giving a voice to the difficult emotions that the human psyche faces. It is a wonderful piece of news for Indian poetry lovers that Seshadri has won such a prestigious award. Motivating aspiring writers and poets is important if any culture has to grow intellectually. Poetry has the ability to bring out rarely examined human emotions and foibles of today’s world, though uniquely universal. It is a way to give vent to human suffering as well. The choice of giving the Pulitzer Prize for poetry to Seshadri this year has worked in the favour of India’s literary talent. Leading Indian writers in the field of English poetry will be inspired by this victory.
