Jayant Mahapatra’s writings spanning over 50 years have left an indelible mark on Indian English poetry.
A tribute to poet Jayanta Mahapatra by lyricist Gulzar
He who was a poet used to stay silent
And say the strangest things
With his eyes trained at one’s ears he would listen
To the sound of mute silences
He would collect the shadows of the moon
And the damp drops of light
Filling the dry leaves of the night in his cupped hands
He would rattle them
Poet-lyricist Gulzar.
From this dense forest of Time
He would pluck ripe-unripe moments
Yes, he, that strange poet
Would wake up in the night and
Raising on his elbows
Kiss the moon on its chin
I heard he departed from the earth yesterday
— Translated from the Urdu original by Rakhshanda Jalil
