The Saturday Club and FACES, in association with The Telegraph, hosted the star-studded launch of Renu Roy’s The Far Side and Other Poems on Wednesday, August 9. Filmmaker Ashoke Vishwanathan moderated an interactive session with Roy and the guests of honour of the evening, Padma Shri Usha Uthup and percussionist Bickram Ghosh. The discussion centred around the interface between poetry and music, with everyone on stage sharing their valuable insight.
It started with Renu’s experience of writing poetry during the pandemic. She said that despite the lockdown, our minds were unfettered and writing for her was a calming and fulfilling experience. The formal launch of the book published by Readomania followed, and everyone received a signed copy. Roy, addressed as the renaissance woman by Vishwanathan, also pointed out the importance of poetry to strike a chord with oneself and the reader, and the duty of poetry to express both the happy and sad times of life evocatively. Bickram Ghosh stunned the audience with his depiction of iambic pentameter in the beats of a moving train as he elaborated on the importance of words and performance in poetry. He explained how the sound of words is instrumental in giving direction. The members on stage read Renu’s poems one by one, giving the audience a glimpse of her art. Keshav Roy read Summer Dusk, after a short discussion on visual and verbal art, while Sumit Roy read the eponymous poem The Far Side with a calypso performance, and Vishwanathan read Wayward River. Usha Uthup, reminiscing on old memories, beautifully wove a line from the poem Monochrome with her own life and journey. The discussion and poetry reading was followed by a brief Q&A session and Uthup’s performance, ending with the song Darling, which got everyone, including Renu, on their toes.
Talking to The Telegraph about her new book, Renu said, “This is my third volume of poems. It’s been published by Readomania. We are very happy to have the book launch today and we have got our guests of honour, Usha Uthup and Bickram Ghosh. So, there will be an interaction and I hope that we will discuss the relationship between poetry and music which will be very relevant to today’s evening. I am extremely happy to have written this book and I hope that I will be able to publish my fourth book which is short fiction by the end of the year.”
Usha Uthup and Bickram Ghosh enlivened the evening with their performance post the book launch
Nayantara Palchoudhuri (left) with Renu Roy
Rajender Singh, Imran Zaki, co-host and president FACES, and Satnam Singh Ahluwalia. “It is heartwarming that across the world, poetry, with its widening appeal, continues to be kept alive and dynamic. The evening programme synced with what the book is all about... passion and devotion to all that constitutes life and living. her poems are finely layered and nuanced just like the program that was lined up with performances from Usha Uthup ji and Bickram Ghosh. Moderation by Ashoke Viswanathanji added a profound dimension with originality and eloquence,” said Zaki.
From left: Sharad Khaitan, honorary consul of El Salvador; Sumit Roy; and Suman Sood, director, B.D. Memorial
President of The Saturday Club, Rahul Johri (right) with vice president Shayak Gupta. “Renu Roy is also a past president of our club and it brings a lot of pride that she has launched a book. She is more into acting, but writing a book, The Far Side, is something very different and I just have gone through it and I found it very apt in today’s world,” said Johri.
(L-R) Shamlu Dudeja, Sudip Roy Choudhury
(L-R) Richa Sharma, Jyotee Khaitan
(L-R) Gouri Basu, Pawan Patodia
(L-R) Vanita Bajoria, Sayantani Guhathakurta
(L-R) Singer Puja Roy; Vibhas Kichlu, library convenor of The Saturday Club, said: “We are really happy that Renu Roy decided to launch a book at Saturday Club, that this event is being so well attended and well done and that Bickram Ghosh, Usha di and Ashoke Vishwanathan are also part of the evening.”