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Culture

Beauty in Wording

“Find the piece of the world that you, and only you, stand on. Write from there.”—Shailja Patel

Only a truly dedicated person would make such a statement and Shalija Patel is one to stand by her word. This devoted young woman lives and breathes about writing. And I am not kidding when I say that, the lovely Miss Patel has been considered to be equivalent to famous Indian writer, Arundhati Roy. I have only one word to describe that comparison…WOW! Just recently I had the opportunity to sit down and have a heart to heart with her and the things that she has accomplished are indeed incredible!! Don’t believe me? See it for yourselves, straight out of the mouth of one of the most talented poets herself!

Was writing and the theater something which you were always interested in or was there a moment in your life when you said, ‘Wow, this is what I need to be doing’?
I knew from a very young age that I wanted to tell stories.  I came to performing later in life, when I discovered the slam poetry scene.

What is your driving motivation for your poetry?
Poetry cuts through the defenses put up by the intellect and goes straight to the gut and the heart. It opens us to feeling and seeing the truth.

How did you first find out that you had such a wonderful gift with words?
I can’t remember a single defining moment – but I was making up poems as soon as I could put a sentence together!

What made you want to pursue writing and become a poet?
Books have always been the gateway to new worlds for me, so of course I always dreamed of being a writer. Poetry chose me rather than me choosing poetry – it has always drawn me more strongly than any other art form.

Is there anyone special that helps you to be creative?
I learn from every artist and creative work that moves me and speaks to me. In the making of Migritude I: When Saris Speak, I had a wonderful director and dramaturg Kim Cook, who was an incredible guide, mentor and collaborator.

Tell us a little bit about “Migritude I: When Saris Speak.” Where did you get this creative idea from? What made you want to use ‘saris’ to unfold the ideas you were trying to share?
Like many Desi mothers, my mother had been collecting saris for my trousseau since I was a child. A few years ago, she got tired of waiting for me to get married, and just gave them to me. So I had this battered red suitcase, filled with exquisite saris, that I certainly wasn’t wearing or using! Around that time, I met my director, Kim Cook. I told her I wanted to do a one-woman show that told the stories of women’s lives under colonialism and imperialism, and she suggested using the saris to tell the stories – it was a stroke of genius!

How does it feel to know that you have so many avid fans and readers that your poetry had to be translated into eight different languages?!? Hats off to you that is quite an accomplishment!
Thank you. I feel incredibly blessed, and also accountable to everyone who reads my work – to stay truthful, and hold my work to the highest standards.

CNN describes you to be an artist “who exemplifies globalization as a people-centered phenomenon of migration and exchange.” Do you agree with this description of you?
I like it very much.  Globalization has been around for millennia – it began when the ancestors of humanity made the first trek north from Africa. We need to re-assert the people-centred face of globalization, support universal standards of justice and human rights, in opposition to corporate globalization that exploits human beings and environments.

According to the UAE, you are equal to that of Arundhati Roy, a famous Indian writer who, in 1997, won the Booker Prize. Did you ever think that your writing would get you such a high compliment such as that? How does it feel to have your name be place alongside such famous writers?
Arundhati Roy is one of my heroes. So to be compared to her is a tremendous honor, even though I’m nowhere near her level of achievement as a writer, thinker and activist. It keeps me striving!

Your hard work has paid off very well; you’ve published a book and two volumes of poetry. How does it feel to know that other people are reading your work and are appreciating what you’ve written?
Humbling. Gratifying. Sometimes terrifying, because to put my work out in public means exposing myself to criticism as well as accolades. But it absolutely makes my day when I get an email from someone telling me my poems have moved them, spoken deeply to them, woken them up.

Personally, I am an English major and for me, inspiration for my writing comes from my family and friends. Where do you get your inspiration from?
Anything that moves me deeply – to joy or rage or wonder. And any situation where I sense that someone is being silenced – I have always been called to break silences as an artist.

Where do you write? When do you write? Do you find that some of your best pieces come out during the most random times of the day or places in the world?
I wish I were more disciplined about scheduling time for writing. But I find I get my best ideas when my body is in motion – walking, dancing, swimming. So I try to capture things in small notebooks, or on scraps of paper, or on my cell phone.

Is there any advice that you would like to give to our aspiring writers?
Find the piece of the world that you, and only you, stand on. Write from there.

Do you have any final words for the readers of Bravura Artist Magazine?
Tell the truth. Live the consequences. Be brave. Laugh. Please be sure to also visit http://www.shailja.com!