“I see
Faces…
People,
The next moment…
I am painted—
We all are!
Painted…
With colors of—
Hope…
Jubliance…
Love!”
This stanza from one of the poems which shares its title with that of the book (‘Painted’), almost says it all. I say almost because apart from hope, jubilance and love, the author, Swati Singh Sambyal, has ‘painted’ other emotions of freedom, misery, despair, longing, loss as well.
It is author’s first publication but you wouldn’t feel so. Why? Because she has been writing for the past 12 years now. And when she says, “Writing is something that comes naturally to me,” you would easily believe her if you have already read the book.
An assortment of 43 poems, ‘Painted’ is a book written in words as simple as could be and is not one of those where at the end of each poem you are left wondering what does it mean. The real meaning is not buried deep within. It is just there. But the meaning is indeed deep and profound. ‘Vindicated’ being a poem where the author clarifies what each word means to her as it trickles down in her thought.
And, as they say ‘beauty lies in simplicity’, all those simple words in the poems are woven so beautifully that each word ‘comes alive’ to you. You can actually ‘feel’ each word there.
Although the poems depict vivid human emotions, relations and life experiences, one theme that runs through all the poems is that of ‘nature’. Being an environmental activist and a person who loves nature through and through, it comes spontaneously in her writing. And poems like ‘I am in London’ and ‘Lily’ are perfect examples the actual power of the words. Swati herself thinks, ‘Words can change perceptions; they have the power to cause a world war, just like they can melt the most ruthless hearts.’
The poems are short and there is a music to all of them which never fails to amuse you. Some poems rhyme and others don’t but each one carries an emotion so strong that none will leave you untouched. You can relate to almost each poem and you get a feeling of ‘been-there-done-that’.
Although in a few poems (like ‘Questions’), you may feel that the rhyme does not come in without effort at certain places and may distract you too but the ones before it are more than enough to keep you engaged till the end.
‘Painted’ is Swati’s first book and a really good one. As an author she is undoubtedly talented, yet modest which is quite evident when she says, “I am constantly evolving as a writer.” The book is available on ‘Flipkart’ and ‘Amazon’. Three reasons why you should pick this one up are because first, it is simple secondly, it explores myriad human emotions, relations and experiences of life elegantly and most importantly, it never makes you feel a mere spectator!
Anumeha Saxena
