Results - Poetry Writing Contest: 2

Dear Poets,

Thank you for participating in Ekphrasis India's Poetry Writing Contest: 2. We truly appreciate your time and effort. The judges surely had a tough time! We are extremely happy to announce the results.

But before we do that, let us know about EI

EI, Ekphrasis India's online magazine, aims to bridge the gap between various art forms. It promotes budding artists and poets by giving them a platform to express their creativity.
The Editorial Board includes Samik Bhattacharya, Rahul Sharma, Mihir Vatsa, Anukriti Sharma.

We are proud to showcase a glimpse of EI 's second issue. It will be released by the end of September.

Here's the cover (Concept and Design - Anukriti Sharma)

We have chosen 49 beautiful poems for this issue of EI ( The poems shall be published in our magazine along with a short bio/photograph of the poet). Ekphrasis India team wishes all the poets the very best in life. Many Many Congratulations to all of you!

EI's featured poets along with their poems are (in alphabetical order) :

1. Aditya Singh - Red was the Colour
2. Aman Mathur- The Forbidden Fruit
3. Amlandeep Bhattacharya - Confusing Times
4. Amrit Sinha - Canvas
5. Anindita Deo - Parasitic Harmony
6. Arvind Kumar Sharma - The Portrayed Souls
7. Aryak Ray - The Red, the Dream, and She
8. Avantika Kaushik - Eve with an Apple
9. Cinthya Anand - The Mask

10. Debasmita Ghosh - The Knife under my Skin

11. Dr A V Koshy - W--king with Colours
12. Dr Aprilia Zank- Mirroring
13. Dr Nicola Coutinho - Beneath the Surface
14. Gajendra Mohan Jha - Break Free
15. Gayatri Soni - Birth of Beauty with Dignity
16. Gorakhnath Gangane - Lifeless
17. James Heller Levinson - Countenance Curational
18. John Fraser. R - Marriage of the Moneylender's Daughter
19. Kanchan Jindal - Who am I?

20. Kavya Sharma - Eve-ness

21. Kriti Sharma - Corners
22. Kritika Pramod Kulshrestha- The Wrath of Betrayal
23. Maliny Mohan - Mirror Hues
24. Manaswita Ghosh- Born in a Closet
25. Mugdha Basu - The Pieces Black and White
26. Nandini Garg - Of the Inopportune!
27. Neeraj Naidu - Bloodstained Dream
28. Nikhita Satnalika - Unrevealed Mask
29. Paramjit Paul - A Tainted Chronicle

30. Piyush Dayalal Bhatt - My Perception

31. Pooja Lokhande - Unrest of Desire
32. Pooja Sharma Rao - Crimson
33. Preeti Singh - Canvas
34. Ragini Puri - Masquerade
35. Rekha Seshadri - Bittersweet Meetings
36. Rukhaya MK - The Lost Canvas
37. Rupam Goswami - Camouflage: Colours of Redemption
38. Saptarshi Basu - Dead Man Talking39. Sarat Kumar Saikia -  Mirage
40. Saravana Kumar Murugan - Cry of a Night Queen

41. Sheetal Kakar - Very Few Times I Fall in Love with Myself

42. Shloka Shankar - Phoenix. Apparently
43. Soujanya. B - The Apple of my Blind Eyes
44. Souvik Sinha - Behold my Love
45. Sukanya Kar - A Masked Existence
46. Susma Sharma Gurumayum - His Fantasy
47. Tom Thomas - Gloom
48. Zeenath Ibrahim - Broken Images
49. Zepphora Lyngdoh - Disguise

The magazine would be online by April 30
If you have any queries or would like make a contribution in EI -
Mail us at ekphrasis.india@gmail.com

The Winners of Poetry Writing Contest: 2
So here are the results! Heartiest Congratulations to all the winners! We shall soon contact you.

1st Prize - Receives a special prize from Ekphrasis India, worth 350/- INR
Rukhaya MK for the poem "The Lost Canvas"
Kerala, India

2nd Prize - Receives a special prize from Ekphrasis India worth 250/- INR
Shloka Shankar for the poem "Phoenix. Apparently."
Bangalore, Karnataka, India

3rd Prize -  Receives a special prize from Ekphrasis India worth 200/- INR
Zeenath Ibrahim for the poem "Broken Images"
Calicut, Kerala, India

4th Prize -  Receives a special prize from Ekphrasis India worth 150/- INR
Kavya Sharma for the poem "Eve-ness"
New Delhi, India
and

5th Prize - Poem to be published in Vayavya/ Impulse magazine
Shared by:
James Heller Levinson for the poem 'Countenance Curational'
New York, USA
and
Nandini Garg for the poem 'Of the Inopportune!'
Bahadurgarh, Haryana, India

Thank you,
Ekphrasis India Team

Poetry Writing Contest: 2

Dear Poets,

After the grand success of EI  - Ekphrasis India's online magazine,  we are glad to announce our second Poetry Writing Contest

Your dream to get published(online) may just come true; since every relevant entry shall be featured in EI.

And that's not all.

The top three winners will receive their favourite books and two lucky contestants will have their poem published in our partner magazines - Impulse and Vayavya

So, what are you waiting for? Just pen down a poetry based on the given painting and win fabulous prizes!
Participate now!

Please read the following guidelines:
1. Poems must be written in English. Translation is a must for those who wish to submit poetry written in any other language.
2. Your poem should be based on the given painting only. Do not forget to include a title. Irrelevant entries shall be rejected.
3. Submit your work here - ekphrasis.india@gmail.com
4. Please mention the following, when you submit your poem -
Name:
Location:
Date of Birth:
Email address:
5. Entries shall be accepted from Friday, June 29, 2012 to Monday, July 16, 2012. Multiple submissions are allowed and late entries shall not be entertained.
6. The poems shall be judged based on creativity, content, and relevance.
7. This contest is open to people from all over the world. We do not discriminate poets on the basis of gender, religion, colour, caste, creed, community, ethnicity, etc. Please refrain from writing hateful/ discriminatory content.
8.  For further queries please leave a comment or contact us on ekphrasis.india@gmail.com
We are always happy to help.
9.  The result shall be announced by the first week of August.

This is the painting for the Contest:

© Subrata Gangopadhyay

All the best! :)

The painting is by a very talented artist: Subrata Gangopadhyay

Sekhar Roy

The Blue Boy

I knew a little boy once who painted his face blue,

For he was born so different from me and you.

His face looked like just another in the crowd,

But his thoughts had their abode higher than the clouds.

Hidden behind the smoke, sunlight was hard to find

When the tanks used to march the deserted streets.

It was the year 1989 and thus not very kind,

For in some corner of the world, people still were colorblind.

Some places where sunlight shone just bright,

He danced and trotted and played around fearless.

While other childhoods of neighborhoods grew up with fright

The Blue Boy merely chose to see a different sight.

He sang as he walked, of the colors he could see,

For he wanted every soul to listen to his songs,

'The colorful flag fluttered with warmth and glee'.

Wind carried his songs to the world where people were living free.

The mother’s heart was frightened when she heard,

Her little boy was the 'Blue Boy' as they called him in the streets.

For it were still 1989 there and thus not at all kind

But the Blue Boy had a special question in mind.

When his mother caught him down there, he said,

'Why can’t I be blue Mamma? When I can see right?

Why do they need so many colors everywhere?

“If they want it to be just black and white?'
©Samik Bhattacharya 2012

To know more about Sekhar Roy, click on any of his paintings below:

Murali Nagapuzha

The Small Store

Adjoining my life

I set a small store

Of little smiles

And laughters

Enveloped with dimples

And sweet smelling sound

I come to life thinking about them

I come to what is real

From stations and electricity bills....

© Rahul Sharma 2012

To know more about Murali Nagapuzha, click on any of his paintings below:

EI - Ekphrasis India's first online Magazine

Presenting EI - Ekphrasis India's first online Magazine.

Featured Artists - Abanindranath Tagore, Om Swami, Anjolie Ela Menon, Pawan Sharma, Ranabir Saha, Gouri Vemula, Satish Multhalli, Jiaur Rahman, Sunil Tambe, and Ajay De.

Featured Poets - Reena Prasad, Rajarajan, Felino A. Soriano, Abhishek Rath, Annie Besant, Arvind Kumar Sharma, Cijo Abraham Mani, Dr. A.V. Koshy, Abhishek 'Sahir', Anukriti Sharma, Gopakumar. R, Jaya Swarup, Madhumita Ghosh, Rahul Sharma, Nishi Jain, Pooja Sharma Rao, Rukhaya MK, Suraj Samtani, Susma Sharma Gurumayum, Zeenath Ibrahim, Samik Bhattacharya, and Mihir Vatsa.

Featured Event: Kala Ghoda Arts Festival, Mumbai.

Click here to read - (For best results - click on the magazine below and view it as single page.)

Open publication - Free publishing - More art

Amiya Bhattacharya

Sadness besieged me
Sadness besieged me
 Alone..
 When I woke up this morning
 An April day
 Thought about the memories
 I so much cherish
 Under the umbrella of sleep
 In the night
 Devoid of those
 Who left no stone unturned
 Ideas
 To kill me..

To mockingbird -
 Who in this large world of infinite desires
 Seeks life in a single pebble
 Floating on the stream
 Flowing down the rocks
 I look and say
 O my bird
 Where dost thou find yourself
 Entranced in this world of eagles
 Who beguile you to clouds
 And cut your wings
 Thrash you to the world beneath..

In the rains befitting my soul
 I look at the clouds
 The rocks of air
 Enticing me to live and
 Then again
 Rocking me down
 A spear of lightening
 Leaving me alone
 A withered leaf
 Drenched with moisture
 But dying of its want...

In a seldom hope that spring shall come
 You spoil your rain
 Thinking about about those memories
 Which never were
 And which never could
 Be part of what you see suiting your life
 Because my friend
 Everyone is as alone as you are
 Behind that mask of smiles
 Everyone is as weak as you are
 Enshrouded by an armour
 Who keeps hopes away
 And allows not the life
 To come out of it..

And being alone in rain
 We pity others
 Trying to feel strength
 In the weakness of others
 Deceiving our weak self
 That yes there is someone
 Who needs our help
 There is someone who is
 As wretched as we don't
 Want the world to know about us..
 And we perish
 By the hands of a fox in sheep
 And leave our world adrift
 Of any hope of happiness...

© Rahul Sharma 2012

To know more about Amiya Bhattacharya, click on any of his paintings below:

Results - Poetry Writing Contest: 1

Dear Poets,
We would like to thank you all for participating in Ekphrasis India's Poetry Writing Contest: 1. Your time and effort is greatly appreciated by our team. We apologize for the delay in announcing the results. The reviews too shall soon be sent to all the participants.

Before we declare the results, we would like to share some good news with our readers.
Ekphrasis India will soon launch its very own online magazine - EI 

EI aims at bridging the gap between various art forms. It promotes budding artists and poets by giving them a platform to express their creativity.
The Editorial Board - Samik Bhattacharya, Rahul sharma, Mihir Vatsa, Anukriti Sharma

Here's the cover of our January issue. Concept and Design - Anukriti Sharma -

18 poets shall be featured in EI ( Their poems shall be published in our magazine along with a short bio/photograph). Their words brought life to the colours and characters of Samik Bhattacharya's painting. Ekphrasis India team wishes all of you the very best in life. Congratulations!

EI's featured poets along with their poems :

♀
1. Annie Besant - The House That Love Built
2. Jaya Swarup - Have Nots
3. Madhumita Ghosh - Play on...
4. Nishi Jain - The Evening Song
5. Pooja Sharma Rao - Patriarchy
6. Reena Prasad - Aurulent Tones
7. Rukhaya MK - The Sound of Music
8. Susma Sharma Gurumayum - The Gathering
9. Zeenath Ibrahim - Absences

♂
1. Abhishek Rath - A Panegyric on the Painting
2. Abhishek Srivasta (Sahir) - Us Shaam Hua Yuun Mehfil Mein (It so happened that evening)
3. Arvind Kumar Sharma - Raga of Life
4. Cijo Abraham Mani - The Durbar of Music
5. Dr. A.V. Koshy - Tansen
6. Felino A. Soriano - Assemblage of approbated rhythms
7. Gopakumar.R - I sing for you
8. Rajarajan - The Man behind the Veil
9. Suraj Samtani - Inspired to Perform

The magazine can be viewed online from 15th March.
If you have any queries or would like to contribute in EI -
Mail us at ekphrasis.india@gmail.com


The Winners of Poetry Writing Contest: 1Heartiest Congratulations to all the winners. We shall soon contact you.

1st Prize - Poet of the Month - Receives a special prize from Ekphrasis India along with a winner badge.
Reena Prasad for her poem "Aurulent Tones"
Sharjah, UAE

2nd Prize - Receives a special prize from Ekphrasis India along with a winner badge.
Rajarajan for his poem "The Man Behind the Veil"
Trichy, Tamil Nadu, India

3rd Prize - Poem to be published in Vayavya Magazine
Felino A. Soriano for his poem "Assemblage of approbated rhythms"
California, USA

4th Prize - Poem to be published in Impulse Magazine
Abhishek Rath for his poem "A Panegyric on the Painting"
Bhubaneshwar, Odisha, India

Thank you,
Ekphrasis India Team

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival - Mumbai, 2012

Straight from the Horse's mouth

Anukriti Sharma visits Kala Ghoda Arts Festival and brings to you a glimpse of Mumbai's artistic, vibrant colours.
To know more about Kala Ghoda Association click on the picture below: 

Mumbai's Pride

The Festival of Art

Something to crow about

Cube of Compassion

Best out of Waste

Chat in Denims

Have an eye on art

Little things that matter

Smoking Kills!

Time to unlock bottled corridors

Big Catch

Back to the Future

Embrace Life

Let Go of everything that pulls you back

Words on a Wooden Horse

Give Peace a chance

Corruption Down Under

Mumbaikars

The modern Yamraj

Colours of Life

Up in the Air

Street Art

Peopled by people

Handle with Care

Art Expressed

Your i-dentity

Little children wiser than men

Treat for Shopaholics

The Majestic Kala Ghoda

Bottled Lantern

In a nutshell

Poetry Writing Contest: 1

Do you love writing poems? Do verses flow from your pen the moment you see a beautiful creation? Does art appeal to your senses? If yes, then this contest is for you.

Ekphrasis India invites poets from across the globe to participate in its first Poetry Writing Contest.

All you need to do is write a poem based on this painting made by our in-house artist Samik Bhattacharya.

The Ten Commandments/ Guidelines:
1. Poems should be written in English. You can also write in vernaculars/other languages, but if you do so, please try and include a translated version alongside.

2. The poem must be based on the given painting. And yes, don't forget to title your poem. Irrelevant entries shall be rejected.

3. Submit your work here - ekphrasis.india@gmail.com Do mention your name, location and other details you would want to share with us.

4. Entries shall be accepted from Tuesday 31st January, 2012 to Wednesday 22nd February. Multiple entries are allowed but late entries shall not be entertained.

5. The Best Poet shall be conferred the title of "Poet of the Month".  He/She shall receive a personalised "winner badge" and also get his/her poem published on Impulse and Vayavya Magazines.

6. Top poems shall be published on Ekphrasis India.

7. Anukriti Sharma, Mihir Vatsa, Samik Bhattacharya and Rahul Sharma shall judge the entries on the basis of creativity, content, and relevance.

8. This contest is open to people from all over the world. We do not discriminate poets on the basis of gender, religion, colour, caste, creed, community, ethnicity etc. Please refrain from writing hateful/discriminatory content.

9. For further queries/questions leave a comment or contact us on - ekphrasis.india@gmail.com We are always happy to help.

10. Free Review! Contestants can now get their poem reviewed by our team. All  you need to do is write"Feedback" or "Review my Poem"  in the subject line. Free review is applicable only to the contestants who follow the guidelines. We might take some time to respond, so please be patient.

All the Best! :)

This is the painting for the Contest:

©  Samik Bhattacharya

Gouri Vemula

Ev-e-il

Light-bearer

Lucifer

lurks

around

the world

he

darkened...

While  Eve

lives a life

of damnation...

No longer chaste - 

never to be

hearkened!

Birds of prey

prey upon her beauty...

And devils of hatred

Assemble

to do

the

death duty.

Following Satan's decree

she lies

fettered

within

the folds of

a tree...

And

Kinnara

looks

at her

with

horse-eyes

of caprice

Lecherous demons

Conquer

every side...

As

the waters of doom

Rape Adam's bride...

Styx, the river

Is bleeding red

Adam is dead

Oh!Adam is dead!

A boat

now

lies stagnant

on the shore

But it moves no more

It moves no more!

©Anukriti Sharma 2012 

To know more about Gouri Vemula, click on any of his paintings below: