Book Review
By Dr Tania Saili Bakshi
‘Haiku no Hanataba’ by Ajay Jugraan
This particular review has been long in waiting. Haiku no Hanataba is a work of love by someone who wears more than just one hat with grace and wisdom, author-poet Ajay Jugraan.
A chance encounter in a Seattle park with a group of Haiku lovers inspired Ajay to be a novel entrant to the world of Japanese poetry writing and led him to create a colourful bouquet of a hundred English haikus for his readers across the globe, which he dedicates to his mother, who in his words had, “the ability to see something positive, something beautiful in every being, in everything”.
Known in the literary world for his creative work such as “The Bridge on the River Song” (a collection of English short stories), “Antrang Satrang” (a collection of Hindi poems), he has now added “Haiku no Hanataba” (a collection of Japanese style 17 syllable haiku poems) to the list.
Ambar Agnihotri’s illustrations blend beautifully with Ajay’s skill with words making the verse even more vivid for the reader. Inspired by the lost beauty of a town he calls home his verses evoke nostalgia for a time well spent. Ajay’s lines are simple, but full of depth and imagination. The seventeen syllables evoke not just a fleeting memory or emotion but also time and place. Flowers, birds, butterflies, flowering trees, beauty of passing seasons, mountains, galaxies and even tiny critters are brought to life as one savours these three line Haikus.
Categorised in ten sections, these Haiku connect with nature and emotions. There’s plenty in this collection that will capture an experience that the reader has lived at any given point in time and can relate to.
Haiku no Hanataba is a book for one who seeks solace, seeks solitude yet seeks camaraderie in the magic of the written word and beyond!
