Arundhathi Subramaniam
Described as 'one of the finest poets writing in India today' [Keki Daruwalla, The Hindu, 2010] and 'a unique poet of our times... in a league all by herself' [Indian Literature, 2021], Arundhathi Subramaniam is a leading Indian poet and author of fifteen books of poetry and prose. Her most recent work includes the landmark Penguin anthology of Indian female mystic poetry, “Wild Women; a book of poems”, “The Gallery of Upside Down Women”; and a book of essays on contemporary women on sacred journeys, “Women Who Wear Only Themselves”. Her prose includes the much-reprinted “Book of Buddha” and the bestselling biography of a contemporary mystic, “Sadhguru: More Than a Life”, while her work as editor includes the much-loved Penguin anthology of Bhakti poetry, “Eating God”.
A recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award for Poetry 2020, and shortlisted for the TS Eliot Prize for Poetry 2015, her awards include the Mahakavi Kanhaiyalal Sethia Award for Poetry, the inaugural Khushwant Singh Poetry Prize, the Il Ceppo Prize in Italy, the Raza Award for Poetry, the Mystic Kalinga Award, the SAARC Literature Award, the Devi Award from The New Indian Express, the Charles Wallace and Homi Bhabha fellowships, among others. She has been active as curator, literary and performing arts critic and poetry editor. She divides her time between Mumbai, Chennai and New York.
All Sessions by Arundhathi Subramaniam
Interpreting ‘Wild Women’ – Poetry, Music and Dance
In her landmark anthology of mystic poetry, Wild Women, poet Arundhathi Subramaniam weaves together the haunting voices of women across the Indian subcontinent. In a talk, interspersed with readings, she will share a lineage of audacious woman-centred spirituality that traverses the poetry of ancient Buddhist nuns, Bhakti and Sufi mystics, tantrikas and Vedantins. Singer Sudha Raghuraman and dancer Dakshina Vaidyanathan extend this weave into music and movement for a unique collaborative performance.