Lemons and sunflowers and haiku

‘Writing as an act of refusal to be defeated by life’s challenges’

Morung Express News
Dimapur | April 4

PenThrill Publication House launched two new poetry collections— Lemons and Sunflowers and All Things Yellow, and my haiku heart, by author Tialila Kikon at the Tia Ki Nagaland Art Space, Dimapur. The launch, on April 4, marked the author’s 6th and 7th published works, though it was her first formal public book launch.

Author Tialila Kikon, an educator and poet based in Dimapur termed the collections as a distillation of personal experience and observation. She described her creative process as a response to both the beauty of nature and the personal trials of life, stating, “Some poems I wrote when I was really, really sad and bitter, some when I was lonely... and some I wrote when the mysteries of nature delighted me,” she said. According to her, she approached poetry as a survival mechanism, quoting a line from her work, “Dear poetry, teach me how to swim.” She urged the audience to maintain “artistic expression or artistic release close to your heart because sometimes you all want to be far away from the ‘madding crowd.’” She added that her ‘haikus’ were born from solitude and the “everyday ordinary words” found in nature.

The launch of the two poetry collections marked PenThrill’s 118th and 119th publications. Publisher Vishü Rita Krocha spoke on the historical and cultural significance of literature in Nagaland. She said that a society's understanding is limited without it, stating, “Every great civilization is grounded on great literature.” She also addressed the economic challenges facing writers in a place where funding and resources for publishing literary works are virtually “non-existent.” “Poetry books hardly get you any monetary returns,” Krocha remarked. Despite, she said that those who write poetry, continue to do so as a “labour of love.”

Reviewing the two volumes, Prof Jungmayangla Longkumer, of Nagaland University, provided an analysis of Kikon’s technical and thematic approach. She explained that ‘my haiku heart’ comprises 99 haikus structured around the traditional 5-7-5 syllable pattern. According to her, the poems illustrate the transient nature of existence, and the “painful reality” of social hypocrisy. She said that Kikon’s work has the power to “transmute reality into something rich and meaningful.”

Quoting Ernest Hemingway’s “big emotions do not need big words,” Longkumer asserted that Kikon effectively encapsulates complex feelings within 17 syllables.

Turning to Lemons and Sunflowers and All Things Yellow, the reviewer described the 60-poem collection as a guide through “life's chaos and uncertainty.” She noted that the placement of titles at the end of each poem invites readers to experience the sensory imagery before the theme is named, ultimately describing poetry as an “anchor for our sanity.”

In her special remarks, Dr Vizovono Elizabeth, an independent researcher and editor, lamented the lack of a “nurturing ecosystem” for creative expressions in Nagaland. “The value of art is yet to be discovered by the Nagas,” Elizabeth observed. Artistic and creative people “are like lost souls in our society, like misfits unable to fit into the system of our society,” she said. 

She described Kikon as a persistent writer, her consistency becoming a form of “championing” Naga literature by making it visible to a wider audience. According to Dr Elizabeth, the act of writing is a form of “resistance,” stating it is found in the "refusal to be defeated by the challenges of life.” “They say that literature or writing is an act of resistance. I believe this to be true.”

Both collections will be available at Crossword, Made in Nagaland Centre, The Story Keeper, in Kohima; and Fusion Store, Butter Book Cafe in Dimapur and also at www.ilandlo.com.