Two Clipped Wings
Two Clipped Wings is a new collection of poetry that Amol Titus is
currently finalizing. Through this collection he intends to explore
various facets of life in India and Indonesia, the two countries
with which he has been intimately associated.
Amol regards India and Indonesia as “two of the great
experiments in diversity in the history of nation states”.
Diversities that span tribes, ethnicities, religions, social
customs, rituals, social strata, living conditions, opportunities,
economic disparities, geographical divisions, physical characteristics
of peoples, lifestyle preoccupations, flora, fauna and so on.
Despite tensions and threats of disintegration the countries
are holding together and in some areas offering examples for
other civic societies to emulate.
India and Indonesia also have ancient bonds that are linked
to trade, travel and shared influences in terms of culture, religion,
social customs and certain priorities like family values for
example. But there are also some significant differences in terms
of temperaments, worldview, successes, failures, dreams, sensibilities
and social mores among others. In Two Clipped Wings Amol Titus
tries to examine some of these intrinsic commonalities and some
of these peculiar differences.
The collection includes his observations on the democratic experiments
in the two countries, the strains on diversity, character strengths & weaknesses,
examples of inspiration, environmental degradation, condition
of women, aspirations of the common man, corruption, role models & villains
as well as idiosyncrasies related to cricket, Bollywood, badminton,
eating fancies, the growing preoccupation with malls and so on.
Some are distinctly Indian others distinctly Indonesian while
some highlight strains of fascinating similarity.
For example the poem The Becak Snooze though set in an Indonesian
milieu could easily apply to the millions of auto rickshaw drivers
or those involved in some ways in the chaotic public transport
systems in both countries –
“With
little to gain, nothing to loose
Unflustered in his noonday snooze
Slumped in lethargy across the becak rear
Without itching ambition, twitching fear
One kretek stubbed, another in pocket
Adorning his bony chest, a fashion locket
While motorized aggressions fume by
With deliberate inertia he continues to lie
Reflecting on moments when he too tried
To gamely inch ahead, competitively vied
Haggled for more, bargained and scrimped
Indulged in petty crimes, occasionally pimped
Bystander to demonstrating multitudes
His own revolutionary zeal focused on food”
(excerpted from The Becak Snooze that appears in the collection titled Two
Clipped Wings)
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