MUMBAI, May 30: Can the post-seventies period boast of any Marathi poet who has scaled classical heights? A recent seminar on trends in poetry was unable to find anyone who fits the bill.

Opinions expressed during the discussion gain importance in light of the fact that the seminar was jointly organised by People's Book House (PBH) and Sahitya Akademi, both recognised forums. Interestingly, the guest speaker and Marathi professor-critic Vasant Patankar, criticised the post-70s poets who were present, including PBH's Satish Kalsekar.

While most of the poet-critics present refused to go on record, they privately condemned Patankar's ``sweeping statements''. Some of them even alleged a motivated campaign on Patankar's part. Sahitya Akademi's regional secretary Prakash Bhatambrekar said he ``needed to read Patankar's research paper carefully to know his yardstick. However, on the face of it I don't agree with his contention. There have been many talented poets, especially the Dalit poets who injected a new sensibility.''

Patankar openly named poets like Kalsekar, Manohar Oak, Arun Kolhatkar, Arti Prabhu, Vilas Sarang and Namdeo Dhasal as allegedly forming cliques to promote themselves. ``Without manifesting any great talent, these eight or ten poets managed to remain in the news by making politically correct moves. They used gimmicks like releasing juicy nuggets about themselves in the media. For instance, some poets publicised their fascination for a particular actress or certain foods.'' While these poets rebelled against their established predecessors, they now seem to have joined the `establishment' themselves, Patankar said. Pointing out that poetry recitation programmes were mere publicity stunts, he opined that poetry was ``no longer a serious activity''. Renowned critic Gangadhar Patil, who compered the discussion, agreed on this score. He condemned the poets who queued up for public reading.

Poet and former president of the Marathi Sahitya Sammelan, Narayan Surve, disagreed with Patankar. ``It is difficult to decide who is `great' and who is `not-so-great' in literature. Yardsticks differ from critic to critic. Moreover, the politics indulged in by poets is a regular feature everywhere. Lobbies do operate, but that does not rule out their creative output.''

Poet Ashok Naigaonkar, who shot to fame during a poetry recitation, said the post-seventies generation of poets has made a definite contribution. For instance, Dilip Chitre delineated the worries of the modern age, Dhasal pioneered the genre of Dalit poetry and Grace wrote of a world of emotions and loneliness. None of these can be belittled, he said. But Patankar's expectation of a classic work is not entirely out of place, he felt. ``I am honoured to find that he expects us to deliver better.''

According to young new wave poet, Arun Mhatre, who was in the audience, Patankar's criticism stems from an overly academic approach to poetry. ``He has a westernised aesthetic sensibility. Therefore, anything beyond his poetic experience is discarded and condemned. Come to think of it, what's wrong with poetry recitations? Didn't Sant Dnyaneshwar sing in the open?'' However, he admits that Marathi poets of this generation did indulge in gimmicks. ``Some of them like Tulsi Parab, Manohar Oak and Kalsekar have made overt sexual references. So much so that readers turned away from the very poetry form.''

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.