PUSHPITA AWASTHI: || masks ||

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

|| masks ||

The woman was

silent
the world

spoke.

A century went by.

The woman has

been hearing the

hollow, scary words

of the world.

Children call them

masks.

(Painting : Preet Khokhar)

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About Me

Pushpita Awasthi: Professor, Poet, Editor, Fiction Writer, Translator, Linguist, Diplomat, Organizer par excellence, Hindi's Ambassador - at large, PUSHPITA AWASTHI defies categorization. She studied at the renowned Kashi Hindu University, Varanasi, India, and later 20 years headed the Department of Hindi at Kashi Hindu University till 2001. In 2001 Pushpita moved Suriname (South America) as First Secretary and Professor of Hindi at the Indian Cultural Centre of the Indian Embassy at Paramaribo. Her love for Hindi drove her to bring together a Hindi community of sorts in Suriname. She organized the seventh World Hindi Conference in 2003 at Paramaribo.
In Pushpita's poems the everyday, contemporary experience echoes the mystic poetry of Kabir and the love poetry of sanskrit poet Jaidev.
Nature and love, the twin themes of her poetic expression, often seem to be extensions of each other.

|| Pushpita’s Persona in the Creative World ||
As a nomadic, poet, author, teacher, editor, professor and diplomat, Dr. Pushpita has attained remarkable status in the world after immense struggle. After qualifying from J. Krishnamurti Foundation and Kashi Hindu University, Dr. Pushpita has taught for 20 years as a Head in the Hindi Department of Vasant Women’s College, Rajghat. Prof. Pushpita is presently a citizen of Netherlands and working as the Director of Hindi Universe Foundation, Winterkoning, Netherlands since 2006 and has worked in India, South America and Europe.
Till the year 2000, she has been co-editing world renowned philosopher, J. Krishnamurthy’s magazine ‘Parisamvad’ based on philosophy under the editorialship of Prof. Krishnanath and gave Hindi translation for his lectures and also edited a few books. She has been continuously writing important ideological articles along with poems and stories which were published in literary and cultural magazines of that time. A number of write-ups on conceptual revolution also appeared in magazines from time to time. In that sequence, she started the struggle for ‘Save Childhood’ and ‘Women’s Rights’ under protection of human rights, which is continuing today at global level.
Pushpita has been associated with films, media and television on a continuous basis and has made emphatic documentaries on the entire life and literature of novelists Prof. Shivprasad Singh, Shri Lal Shukla and Prof. Vidyanivas Mishra, which were broadcast on Indian and Suriname television. She was engaged in a long discussion on world literature and culture with Prof. Vidyanivas Mishra, which was published by ‘Bharatiya Gyanpeeth’, Delhi under the title ‘Cultural enlightenment with communication’, which is a priceless asset of world’s literary field.
A stepper in international fraternity, Prof. Pushpita becomes an extraordinary context of introduction for herself by creating a unique duality of the utilization of composition strengths in the interest of privacy of creativity or the creativity performed in privacy and the generality of creativity. She is working as Hindi Professor in the Indian Cultural Centre and Indian Embassy of Suriname situated in north-east of South America since 2001 and has been the First Secretary till the year 2005. In this sequence, she joined the movement of three generations of Indians for struggle of Indian culture and language. She founded ‘Suriname Sahitya Mitra’ and ‘Suriname Vidyanivas Sahitya Sanstha’. She edited and published two magazines namely ‘Shabd Shakti’ and ‘Hindinama’. She organized a number of literary and cultural programs. She conducted classes for creative writing.
The Indian population of Suriname, which had become their motherland, were able to recognize the land of Suriname in their mother tongue. She wrote more than a dozen books on that country for this purpose. In order that the entire world is able to get a glimpse of Surinamian Indians’ love for Hindi and Indian culture, she established a special correspondence with External Affairs Ministry and organized the ‘Seventh World Hindi Conference’ with her sheer hard work and dedication.
She compiled the fragmented creations of play writers and poets of Suriname working in the field of Hindi literature for the past 50 years and converted them from Roman script to Devnagari script and edited the collection which was published for the first time in Hindi language from Radhakrishna Publications, Delhi. This book was released in the Seventh World Hindi Conference organized in Paramaribo, capital of Suriname by its Vice President and Minister of External Affairs, Government of India. In this way, for the first time, the Hindi speaking writers became distinguished among Hindi lovers of the world and the admirer’s of literature came to know about their writings. Pushpita edited the poetry collection named ‘Jivan Jyoti’ of Late. Mahadev Khunkhun and wrote books titled ‘Suriname’, ‘Katha Suriname’, ‘Kavita Suriname’, ‘Hindi Education in Caribbean countries’ (Radha Krishna Publications), Suriname (National Book Trust), Suriname ka Srijnatmak Sahitya (Sahitya Academy). Along with that she also translated the poems of Dutch and Surinamian poet Martin Haridutt Lachman Shirnivasi and Jeet Narayan in Hindi which were published from Rajkamal Publications. She made two long documentaries on the art, culture and nature of Suriname nation to be showcased on the special occasion of Seventh World Hindi Conference. These were shown after 2003 in the school auditoriums and aired on television in Indian dominated nations.
Prof. Pushpita has authored a special book titled ‘Devnagari for beginners’ for Hindi learning students in foreign countries including Devnagari script with six languages along with other linguistic sciences which is being used in Indian dominated nations.
The research book titled ‘Hundred years of criticism of Hindi Poetry’ has acquired lot of prestige in the world of criticism. Collection of poems, titled ‘Akshat’, ‘Hriday ki Hateli’, ‘Devavriksha’, ‘Antardhwani’, ‘Ishwarashish’, ‘Tum Ho Mujhme’, ‘Shabdon Main Rahati Hai Wah’ have been published out of which ‘Ishwarashish’ was released by the President in the Mumbai auditorium on International NRI’s Day, 7 January 2006. Most of the poems from this collection were an inspiration of the culture and nature of Indian dominated nations and was brought out by Radha Krishna Publication. The translation of poetry collection ‘Shabdon Main Rahati Hai Wah’ into Dutch language by Dick Plucker and Ludovic Brunet has been published from Netherlands and was released in the Keran Institute auditorium of Lading University and Hindi Scholar (Foreigner) Dr. Teyo Damastyekha gave his statement in this book. Poetry collection titled ‘Shail Pratimaon Se’ was released by Lady Padma of Mauritius on the occasion of Hindi language conference organized by Cultural Ministry of Mauritius. This collection was translated in Dutch and English languages by a team of translators. The books were titled as ‘Het beeld in de rots’ and ‘The statue in the rock’. The book in all the three languages, namely, Hindi, English and Dutch was published from Netherlands. In this collection there is a vague feeling of timelessness that comes from the inner world of her experience, which she defies as the known rules of time and space. Most of the poems in this collection are inspired by and dedicated to the life in the Caribbean, especially Suriname, where Pushpita spent some productive years. Pushpita oscillates between admiration for people. Besides, translation of this book in Japanese, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Russian languages is in progress. Apart from several poetry collections, stories collections titled, ‘Akshat’, ‘Janma’ and ‘Ghar Se Bahar’ have also been published. Along with this contribution in special Hindi language literary magazines and contemporary magazines at global level is continuing.
Subjects like nature and love, woman and earth, life and religion, politics and philosophy have been the basic sources of her creative writing and thinking. Along with that, the poor and marginal agricultural labourers from South Asian countries including India and China, the cultural struggle and atrocities of Indians of Mauritius, Fiji, Suriname, British, Guiana, French Guiana, Trinidad and Tobago, South Africa and Caribbean nations have also been the subjects of her writing. She holds responsible the Indian Zamindars, moneylenders, creditors and power greedy Indian exploiter society more than the Dutch, French and British rulers who have exploited the poor people to an extreme extent along with their families. They raped the women and let the children die from hunger. The farmers had to leave behind their huts and native villages. They were not sad for leaving their country as much as the agony for separation from their motherland. This is continuing even today – farmers are committing suicide and the youth is rushing abroad.
The Indian agricultural labourers of the eighteenth and nineteenth century were forced to leave their home and nation due to exploitation and oppression. But they believed the foreign land to be their motherland and worked as farm labourers. They were on pins and needles due to hard work. Tears of blood rolled down their cheeks. But still, they raised the Indian values within the walls that they lived in. They carried the Indian culture’s spirit and will to live in their minds as well as the strength of devotion in thy selves to pass on these values to their future generation to raise it in their life values even after one hundred – two hundred years as they smell the fragrance of the land of their ancestors. Their population is around 40 to 50 percent in Indian dominated nations. 70 percent of the population in Mauritius is Indian. Till recently, its government had Indians and they are ruling in several other countries and have hold in several ministries and departments of the world. They have transformed the foreign land into the literary values of Kabir, Mira, Tulsidas and Surdas with their cultural dedication, which have the values of life. Prof. Pushpita believes that it has tremendous power of global connect due to the combination of cultural spirit of Indians. The Indians have formed an indelible and integral relation with the world on the basis of this strength that they have become the part and parcel of these nations. The identity of the Indians today has combined with the spirit of the nations overseas which cannot be easily dissociated. On one side, it shows the strength of struggle of Indians and on the other side we also experience the strength of ancient Indian culture, religion and philosophy which is prosperous with imperishable will to live – Indian culture. Interfusing, yet protecting ourselves; while remaining endless ourselves, in spite of an end for our physical self.
Continuously for a decade, among the Indian dominated nations, Suriname, Guiana, Trinidad, Fiji, South Africa and Caribbean countries have been the areas of Prof. Pushpita’s work and creative thinking. She has seriously felt that the new Indian generation in Mauritius, Guiana, Trinidad and to some extent countries like Suriname, has not only dominated in the field of power, politics and business but have also struggled with the language and culture of other countries at global level and have created a recognition for their language and culture. The roots and source of which lie in the ancient Indian culture on one hand and Indian folk culture on the other hand. But its identity and soul are completely different from the modern India. They have their own unique Indian cultural identity. This is being continuously and strongly pronounced in Prof. Pushpita’s poems, stories and articles.
Keeping the complete Indian cultural creative artistry vision of Prof. Pushpita in mind the Cultural Ministry of Indian dominated nation, Mauritius invited her for its International NRI Summit as a Chief Guest and Expert and declared her the General Secretary of International Indian Cultural Council. Prof. Pushpita experienced that government NRI institute of India shows concern for money and technique in its global summits and conferences but it fails to experience the distress of cultural struggle of Indians. Even in this condition, she is working for uniting the dedicated cultural lovers like Sh. Rajnarayan Gati, Sarita Vudu, Jagdish Goverdhan, Reshmi Ramdhani, Rajrani, Prahlad Ramsharan, Indradev Bhola Indranath of Mauritius and Mauritius government along with Dr. Indrachanda Awasthi and Shailesh Kumar of Fiji and Indians of other countries. The linguist and cultural workers of Suriname, Trinidad and Guiana are supporting her in this movement of cultural recognition. Nowadays, she is busy writing a novel on her 15 years experience on the cultural struggle of Indians.
Pushpita is also a nomadic. For the sake of fulfilling her dream of world tour, she has travelled by sea along with her husband Sh. Bhagwan Prasad and visited all the nations located around the Baltic Sea. While travelling along the 22000 km long Atlantic Ocean they did a 2000 km long intimate tour of Amazon river. During this travel she did an in-depth study of life struggle of unfading Indians. She experienced from the intimate tour of Brazilian cities like Belum, Makapa, Manus habited by Portuguese. She visited the west coast islands in South Africa. She travelled to several Caribbean nations and islands like Devil’s land, Trinidad, Tobago, Barbade, Centralia, for several months and studied the identity of Indians among that culture. She experienced the life and culture of these places along with the sand, beaches and the Sun.
Along with sea travels, she also went up to the top of Alps Mountain from France side and also enjoyed the peak of ‘Young Trav’ mountain of Switzerland, whose peak is above the clouds in the sky. She wrote a chain of more than 25 poems in a collection titled ‘Alps ka Himalaya se Sanvad’. Apart from Japan and Russia, she travelled to all the European nations several times. She lived for several weeks at the famous lakes of Italy – Garda, Maggiore, Como and wrote a chain of poems. These were translated into several languages including English, French, Dutch, and Spanish. These poems contain the beauty of untouched natural splendour of motherland. In this way, Prof. Pushpita also creates a philosophic and touristic relation between the natural tourist places of India and Europe. She strengthens her voice along with the literary figures and linguists of the world for the protection and conservation of nature and environment in the world.
These days, Prof. Pushpita is establishing a creative conversation with the international community. She has concentrated her unending and extraordinary creative energy of language and literature and has become a centre of dynamics that is raising signs of a new globalism. Prof. Pushpita of Hindi creation world has infringed the geography of conservative language and making efforts for forming a mutual grouping of nations of greater human language which can allow the effective expression of intensive sensations of love. While travelling to various countries, she has assimilated the endemism and local social sensitivities and developed a targeted approach of greater human relations. This approach embodies the kindred honour towards their culture, tradition and history. In order to express her kindred honour, Prof. Pushpita continues her search for multifaceted possibilities of creative language and in this search, her method of using the order of expressions with their accuracy is amazing. She has an additional discipline, such as photography, she makes this as the medium of expression of her poetic fluidity, which contains her perception of history, which may be present anywhere in the world, it has a feeling of honour towards monuments and heritages. It is establishing the language in various disciplines and mediums of expression, Pushpita is a successful experimentalist of it.
Prof. Pushpita has practiced creation and criticism with equal feeling. In both these practice places, she appears to be an eloquent spokesperson of women’s liberation and she creates poems with this spirit and hence the basic essence of her entire creative persona is love. Her essence of love is so sharp and deep that Pushpita writes spiritual poems of physical love. Poems from ‘Akshat’, ‘Hriday ki Hateli’, ‘Devvriksha’ collections are its examples wherein one can hear the echo of sensitivity of love of Sanskrit poet, Jaidev. She gives body to the spiritual love in her poems. This is in one way like a miracle taking place with the recurrence of entering another body which happens in her poems. It is the situation of stepping into the bliss of love, Pushpita has already stepped in this bliss. When her creative love obtains free proliferation then it reflects in the form of a surprise in the nature and animal world. The truth is that, Pushpita’s love vibrates where there is nature, where is there is bliss of life and effloresces into poem, therefore, Pushpita is basically a poetess of love and nature.
Prof. Pushpita’s involvement with nature joins the universal concern of our life essence along with nature and earth to her poems. The context with which nature, earth, mountains, water, clouds, river and moon appear in her poems, informs about her concerns and depth. Pushpita engraves the concern regarding exploitation of earth and nature in her poems very nicely. She is affiliated with the international community with her creative energy for the protection of earth and nature.
A creative global group is appearing in the world for the sake of protection of nature and ultimately for protection of mankind that neither can be categorized into some conservative and prevailing promises nor divided into hemispherical groups of strength because the contemporary world has become a single polar and this division and its dynamics have become irrelevant. Pushpita has understood this minute change with the same minuteness along with its sensitivity and her bent is clearly towards those strengths, which is involved in the initiative to protect earth, nature and love.
This is a remarkable indication and it is necessary to underline it in its greater contexts. The reason being that Prof. Pushpita’s involvement with nature is moving much ahead in the naturalist poetic flow and also has a thoughtful eye on the pace and direction of development of mankind and clarifies her global concerns. These concerns are undoubtedly towards that world, which were known as the third world countries before pole mutilation of the world.
These countries and the concerns and worries towards them mentioned in Prof. Pushpita’s articles and her ideological write-ups’ and the people around which her concerns are expressed tell the whereabouts of people of darkness in the brightness of the world. These residents of darkness, wherever they live, are in the mind of Prof. Pushpita and when they appear in her writing, then they are not the residents of any designated nation, instead it is a mankind, which are known as never-fading Indians, Indian nationals and aboriginals. The atrocities and malefic relations were carried on with these civilizations even when they were known as the third world country. Looking at the political geography of the ‘World of Darkness’ and the darkness of this geographical world in its multifaceted contexts and several references might appear to be new. In order to bring to light the capitalists creating this darkness in a straight-forward manner and to maintain its stand with the human society towards darkness, the creative energies of the world are now moving ahead of representations and making a positive initiative. Prof. Pushpita is associated with these energies through Hindi Universe Foundation due to which her creativity is liberating from symbolic stupor and keeps the historical truths in front of us.
Prof. Pushpita makes a precise interpretation of the entrepreneurship of Indians living in Mauritius, Suriname, Fiji, South Africa and other Caribbean countries and other nations of the world and is drawing our attention towards this irony in her research based article which insults entrepreneurship and finally its history. Now, when this entrepreneur section has won over the extremities with its will to live and has built its own world and identity then a different kind of interference is being made. Pushpita openly mentions about these in her article and also opposes them.
The nature and its surroundings are being snatched from the aboriginals of the world. In this situation, Prof. Pushpita has experienced that due to power greedy politics of the world, due to the interference with the nature and its environment, some humane sections of the society are in trouble, which includes mainly the never-fading Indians of Brazil, South Africa and Caribbean island nations and Red Indians along with some aboriginal sections of India. The condition of a common immigrant Indian spread across the world is similar to the condition of the oppressed section in India. The nations where Indians do not have their own power are like second grade citizens of that country in spite of being the citizens of that country since generations. The pain and agony of these citizens resounds in the articles of Prof. Pushpita. She believes that this is happening because the concepts of world development are extremely doubtful. Man is not in the center of this concept, hence, the mankind living in proximity with the nature is being robbed of his natural environment and inhuman plans of development are being made and are also being implemented in a dangerous manner. Whereas, natural beings, aboriginals, ancient Indians and perdurable Indians lead a life of co-existence. There is no divided nature in this setup, there is complete natural environment.
The involvement of Pushpita with nature correlates with a person living in nature. It associates her with a very humane tradition. Her naturalist poetry collection should be looked from outside the orthodox framework of criticism and seen along with broader human tradition because her writing takes place in this form only.
Indians, whether they live in their own country or outside their nation, in any country or island, whether they are non-residents Indians or Indian citizens, or never-fading Indians or aboriginals, indelible Indian values flow in their blood and soul, which can be heard continuously resounding in Pushpita’s writing.
She is handling the responsibility of Director of Hindi Universe Foundation since 2006 and has been propagating Hindi language and literature in Europe and Indian dominated nations and is carrying on a movement at global level for the cultural pride of Indians. As a part of that, she is involved in the translation of contemporary Hindi literature in other languages and foreign language literature in Hindi language and is therefore associated with several government and non-government organizations, and cultural and language departments of universities.
In this way, Prof. Pushpita is dedicated with heart and soul for protecting the human values along with human rights at global level so that the common man can be free from the politics of war and terrorism. In her extraordinary communication, she has relentlessly been the honorary member of a number of institutions of the world and islands and is active with the intellectual, cultural and literary personalities along with creation of literature. As an invitee, she has made diplomatic tours to several nations like Japan, Mauritius, Europe, America, South Africa, and Caribbean island nations. She has narrated her poems. She has organized workshops while giving lectures on creative writing in order to propagate Indian culture and literature at global level.
Since 2005 Pushpita lives and works in the Netherlands. She is founder-director of Hindi Universe Foundation.
Contact :
Professor (Dr.) Pushpita Awasthi
Director - Hindi Universe Foundation
Winterkoning 28
1722 CB Zuid Scharwoude
NETHERLANDS
            0031 72 540 2005
            0031 6 30 41 0778
Email : pushpita.awasthi@bkkvastgoed.nl
Blog : (for English) http://poetpushpita.blogspot.in/
          (for Hindi) http://pushpitaawasthi.blogspot.in/

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PUSHPITA AWASTHI

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

|| masks ||

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