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Words with Aminur Rahman
Cover Story

Poetic canvas crossing borders  

Published : Thursday, 26 January, 2017 at 12:00 AM  Count : 474
Nazmun Naher Shishir
�Impassionate, exotic madness will be the answer,� quotes Aminur Rahman from his poem 'My Soul' while sharing his food of 'poesieness'. This bilingual contemporary Bengali poet and Country Director of IMS Bangladesh & Sri Lanka in Bangladesh & Sri Lanka Aminur Rahman lays the aces of his
poetic-life-tales.
Since last three years, Rahman is the Director of an international poetry summit entitled 'Dhaka International Poet Summit' which is a grand initiative to 'enroute' Bengali literature being rooted, giving wings to own literature, enriching its canvas, through reaching different maps of the world. This year from 31st January to 4th February, 2017, poets from Austria Manfred Cobot, from Germany Tobias Burghardt and Jona Barcutt, from Russia Victor Pogadaev, from Puerto Rico Luz Mar�a L�pez and Camacho Rivas are going to attend the festival to be held at different venue --- Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, Bangla Academy, and Biswa Shahitta Kendra.
"When quality work meets communication, the outcome is extraordinary". Thus, Rahman believes in being global as well as local.
Rahman's works have been translated in more than twenty-five languages and has poetry books in English, Spanish, German, Japanese, Mongolia and Arabic. Poet like Manfred Chobot, Dr Peter Horn, Lee kuei Shien, Sudeep Sen and many more renowned poets have translated Rahman's poems.
"We do not have quality translations of our Bengali poetry. Proper representation is an utmost needed. Translator and the author should know each other. Poets need to know another poet to translate poetry," believes Rahman.
While sharing his beginning of poetic journey, Rahman recalls: "School magazines played a great role in becoming a 'poet', as we used to meet many verse-legends like Shamsur Rahman, Al-Mahmud, and thus my inspiration to verse continues."
He started writing poetry since his very childhood, along with his academic studies in Ideal School and College, Dhaka College, and eventually in Pharmacy Department, University of Dhaka.  
The kid-days of Rahman's journey made him ponder over poets and poems, as if it was in his veins. "How do a poet look like?" a question often pepped in kid-Rahman's minds:
"Poet Al Mahmud's sons were my classmates in school. One day they said their father is a poet. My urge to meet a poet soared higher and they took me to their home. And I saw a poet that day. I read one of his famous books Pankourir Rokto," Rahman's memory-lane got vivid.
Poet Aminur Rahman's upbringing was with the '50's poets: Fazal Shahabuddin, Mohammad Moniruzzaman and many more. Being nostalgic, Rahman said, "After school I used to give adda with them. I have learnt from them a lot in those thoughtful gatherings and of course I miss those days now."
Rahman emphasizes on connection with the past to step forward. Rahman thinks, "Poets of the '50's have influence on the poets of the '30's. This connection builds a bridge. Therefore, community as well as market of the culture builds up."
Rahman believes in being lucid in writing, love for poetry should be like food for soul. Citing from his own poem 'The Sculpture', "You're entwined with my soul --- its root, plinth, and depth." Rahman says, "In my prose, I try to write with gravity --- I cannot write novel though I would love to. Poetry is my genre and I cannot prioritize to pour anything but love in my poetry."
But only emotion is not enough, Rahman critically points out, structure and the sutra are important equally. "You need to pour your love even in agony and still have to be cautious about the structure to give it a curve of love."
With a long sigh, Rahman words on today's situation of poets: "The lack of practice and study are making today's poet unproductive, I would say they are more into fame and less into quality work."
"Little by little everything is crumbling," citing from Rahman's poetic world, so Rahman wishes for a poetic community to be connected: the elder poets with the younger. Political grouping of poets is also responsible for not getting 'respect' from the youngers."
As an editor of 'Bangladesh-e Shilpacharcha' and 'Aabritti Bishayak Probandho', Rahman observed that some writers are very rigid when it comes to editing. But, "Editing is a must needed task to polish the writing; people who are rigid about editing are ignorant," bluntly states Rahman.
On children's literature, Rahman comments: "Parents lack understanding how to nurture and which books should be bought for children. If we can nurture our children with quality literature, the future would be bright in literary sector."
Aminur Rahman, thereby, calls off the curtain with a note from his verses expressing his affection for poetry: "My perpetual diary everyday starts with you" and let lit-world and children be entwined, because I do not wish for "A life of exile from poetry".

LITERARY WORKS BY AMINUR RAHMAN  
Kazuko Shiraishi's Japanese poems in Bangla: 'Kazuko Shiraishir Kabita' (2003)
Sudeep Sen's English poems in Bangla: A Blank Letter:'Ekti Khali Chithi' (2000), 'Mansoon': 'Barsha' (2003)
Peter Horn's poems in Bangla: 'Peter Horn er Kabita' (2003)
Gombojavyn Mend-Ooyo's poem in Bangla: 'Gombojavyn Mend-Ooyor Kabita' (2006),
'Kabi A Samad Said O Kabi Ahmad Kamal Abdullah'r Kabita' (2007)
In Spanish translations, 'La Escultura: The Sculpture' (AARK ARTS, UK, 2002)
'Gedichte von Aminur Rahman und Manfred Chobot' is Aminur Rahman's collection of poems in German translations with Austrian poet Manfed Chobot, published by SACAC, Canada (2003)
'Love Poems', collection of poems in Japanese, edited by Japanese poet Kazuko Shiraishi (SACAC, Canada, 2004)
'Heart's Shore', his collection of poems in Mongolian, edited and translated by famous Mongolian poet G Mend-Ooyo, published by Academy of Culture and Poetry, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (2006
'Six Contemporary Important Poets of the World' (Adorn Books, Dhaka, Bangladesh, 2017)
Kazuko Shiraishi's Japanese poems in Bangla: 'Kazuko Shiraishir Kabita' (2003)
'Perpetual Diary: Poetry and Painting' (Ithaca, Spain, 2013)
'100 poems of Bangladesh', books from Germany, edition Delta (publisher), edited by Peter Horn and Anette Horn, translated in English (2017)
COLLECTIONS OF POEMS IN BANGLA
'Bishashikorotole' (Kathak,1989)
'Hridoypure Dubshatar' (Kathak, 1991)
Bilingual book of poem with CD --- 'Bhalobasha Abong Annanya Kabita' (AARK ARTS, UK 2003)
'Premer Kabita' (Kathak, 2006)
'Thikana: Kobitadhigir Par' (Kathak, 2007)
AWARDS
1. Heaven Horse Award, Mongolia (2015)
2. Chinggish Khan Gold Medal by Chinggish Khan University, Ulaanbaatar, Mongilia (2006)
3. 3rd Numera World Poetry Expression, Malaysia (2016)
4. Awarded by Comparative Literature Association, Malaysia (2007)
REPRESENTATIVE OF BANGLADESH
IN FESTIVALS
1. Medellin International Poetry Festival, Colombia, (2002)
2. Babylon International Festival of Arts & Cultures, (2012)
3. International Poetry Festival, Granada in Nicaragua, (2013)
4. The XII World Poetry Festival, Medellin, Colombia (2002),
5. The World Poetry Reading, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2002 & 2004),
6. The World Poetry Festival, Kaushiang, Taiwan (2005)
7. The Pan Pasific and 10th Asian Poetry Festival, Tokyo Japan (2005)
8. The XXVI World Congress of Poets, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (2006)
9. The XXVII World Congress of Poets, Chennai, India (2007)
10. Delhi International Literary Festival, India (2008)






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