A Bird’s-Eye View On “Priyatama (Darling)” of Dr. Phani Mohanty
Published by -Black Eagle Books, Dublin, USA
Book reviewed by- Dr. Sonali Sahu
Priyatama (Darling) is a long everlasting romantic poem of the Sahitya Akademi awardee Dr. Phani Mohanty who belongs to the state of Odisha. This book has been translated into English, Hindi, Assamese and Bengali language and in all such languages it created an echo of eternal love in the heart of many readers of Priyatama. After going through the whole poem I realized that, the poet fell in love with an imaginary lady whom he loves unconditionally. While enjoying my reading journey with Priyatama I felt the word love is a painful reward and there is an indiscernible pleasure even with separation and pain in love.
Deserting me alone you left
and you left, I am sinking and sinking
With every passing moment
In fathomless mid-ocean. (Page no-11, Darling)
These lines in the beginning of the poem are so mesmerizing where I could essence the unfathomable affection of the poet and his yearning for love what made me curious to know more about the lady love (Priyatama). While experiencing the bewitching beauty of Priyatama I felt the love in the air around me as every poem and it’s mindboggling lyrical rhythm with its charm magnetizing me to see, touch and feel the lady love of the poet. The human body and its existence are transitory but the reflections of our true love never die. It remains with us forever with the hope to meet your soulmate in the next life. How the poet is wholly absorbed in the love of his darling, where he feels everything meaningless for him without the presence of his lovemate has beautifully been explained in the second poem of the book Darling:
What’s this life, Darling?
Every moment I beckon words and
Dismantle them
Amidst the medley of shuffled words
A sentence can’t be framed in this life (Page no-14, Darling)
who can be so sensitive and tangled in love like the poet in 21st century where the definition of love and romance have lost in the hidden corner of a bleak world. “Priyatama” is not a mere book of poetry only, it’s an emotional outburst of the poet has been sprinkled as drizzling dots of love in the contemporary world.
Poet Phani Mohanty is madly in love with his ladylove where he kept on expressing his feelings for her from the beginning to end of the poem. No other beauty could tempt him except priyatama. while enouncing the name of his beloved the poet feels an inaudible dreamy feeling in each nerve of him, heart beats fast, lips start thrilling, he forgets his own existence and deeply lost in the thought of his love. All female names echo the name of his love. In the sun, moon and the whole universe seem forgetful to him as the protagonist is soaked in love and the love only. I found the glimpse of this sense in the poem eight where the poet is showing his unconditional affection for his Priyatama, as he finds her everywhere.
Which name shall I cajole you, Dear?
Shall I call you Shyama, Sutapa, Visakha, Kanta, Manorama
Or, Puspa, Vitika, Bhadra Mallika…. Tilottama.
Any name I choose echoes your name. (Page no-25, Darling)
The interactive style of this poem connects each writer to the concept of this volume. Where the other romantic poets of his age focused on the love of divine world like Radha Krishna, there Phani Mohanty highlighted on the divine love of the materialistic world. I cheered up the partial poem, where as the rest part of the poem scattered my heart as I found the protagonist is dead at the end of the poem. Before departing this world, he consoles his lady love not to cry and feel deserted without him. He assures his love for her will remain for ages and in every life they will be together. This poem made my smile in love, blush in the feel of romance and cry eventually. In my opinion this book Priyatama (Darling) is undoubtedly a magic spell to transform the materialist love of this modern world to undying love of the hero of Priyatama.
Mr. K.K Mohanty, a renowned translator has translated Priyatama into English (Darling) has been published in Black Eagle Books, USA. His effort to justify Phani Mohanty’s poem in English language is praiseworthy.
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