The Bombay Poetry Crawl

20th century poetry & Indian cities:

archives, walks, talks

Collaborators

What & Why?

Preserving the legacy of Bombay poets

The Bombay Poetry Crawl (TBPC) is a dedicated archival research space focusing on Bombay poets who wrote about the city from 1947-1999 in various languages including Hindi, Marathi, English, Urdu, Gujarati, Tamil, and more. Our mission is to preserve and celebrate the rich literary heritage of Bombay through the works of these poets.

Exploring diverse linguistic and cultural narratives

TBPC offers seamless integration with different platforms, providing a unique opportunity to explore and experience the linguistic and cultural diversity of Bombay through the lens of poetry, offering a deeper understanding of the city's rich heritage.

Last week we were meant to read monsoon poems at @atrangi.katta but the horribly ironic storm that hit mumbai violently and left a row of bodies in its wake meant we had to switch to an online format. Which also worked it well, considering we were safe at home. What does rain mean in times of climate change, municipal failure and concretisatiom of cities? It means longer summers, shorter monsoons, and sudden, harsh rainfall that leads to flooding and landslides.

So we do the only thing we know: read what poets had to say and write about it all. And protest. As much as possible.

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Archiving poets from 20th century Indian cities has been a crazy, fulfilling journey that I started in 2020. It would not be possible without all the support I got from friends and writers and readers. But definitely would not have been able to spread the word without the press! So today I want to thank all the journalists and photographers who took the time and effort to write about my work. To give it space and value on the page.

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[Season 2 Episode 3] Dr Rakhshanda Jalil talks about how Progressive Writers Association meetings in Mumbai were frequented by women as well, and how these poets and writers created inviting spaces for women and men to debate, dissent and discuss together.
"This was a faily gender-just space" she says, talking about the communions that took place within literary circles in the 20th century.

You can listen to the full conversation with Dr Jalil by clicking the link in my bio and listening to the full interview — for free on YouTube, Spotify and my website!

@rakhshandajalil

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Marathi poetry in 20th century Mumbai was expansive as the city itself. They wrote about textile mills and kaamgaars, the sea and reclamation projects, female life and labour, politics and internationalism, all in an ever-evolving patois that took from various languages and dialects. Comprising powada, free verse, old forms and experimental poetics, each of the poets de-romanticized the city by speaking to its harsh realities. Here are just short quotes from some poets who made this city their home.

Who are some of your favourite Marathi Mumbai poets? Tell me in the comments below 👇

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Link in bio (assuming the weather settles by Sunday)!

The Shorelines Poetry Crawl has us reading poems about the torrential, unpredictable, mythical, magical, disaster-inducing sea that surrounds this island city. Through the poetry of Adil Jussawalla, of course.

Join us through the busy Koliwada in Versova as we read his elliptical, stunnijng city poems.

PS: in case the weather gets worse, I will refund the money!

🌦🌦🌦🌦🌦🌦🌦🌦🌦🌦🌦

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Yesterday on the 4th of July we read poems written in India during the Cold War years. Today, rainstorms have taken over the city. Stay safe folks. ⛈️⛈️⛈️

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not a 20th century poet, but a contemporary one from Mumbai/Bombay, Kunjana Parashar @holy.squid wrote this brilliant poem in her brilliant debut - They Gather Around Me, the Animals. it won the 2024 Barbara Stevens poetry book award and is a torrid, fast moving collection that urged me to look at my city diagonally.

with all the discourse and important talks ongoing about climate change, the rain, mangroves, concrete and natural disasters, Kunjana’s poem asks all the questions relevant to today. and relevant to this year’s rains. and the violent love for it.

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LINK IN BIO🚲🚲🚲
Walking the Iron Curtain in Bombay. We walk through the poet’s city that was alive during the Cold War years. Discover how the US and USSR exerted their influence on the subcontinent, and how city writers responded to global politics. During this crawl we read Bombay poets who were sensitive to these global affairs: Sahir Ludhianvi, Dilip Chitre, Josh Malihabadi, Vasant Dattatraya Gurjar, Nissim Ezekiel, Sajjad Zaheer, among others. As well as the influence of American pop culture and Soviet ideology on India.

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कामगार स्तवन - अण्णाभाऊ साठे (Kaamgaar Stavan - Annabhau Sathe), Read by Prathamesh Pawar at Lalbaug’s कामगार कल्याण मंडळा. Back in March 2026, when we took the bright young students of @film_literature_culture for a textile mills poetry crawl.

@aa_pattya

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Film watch party + Poetry Talk: on Ishq aur Inquilab // Kaifi aur Sahir // Romance and Revolution // Poetry & Bambai.
With Zubair sahab, encyclopedia of Urdu history, and @shivathorat, filmmaker and writer and researcher.
what a day it was!

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Reach out to us to explore the poetic world of Bombay, share your insights, or collaborate on projects dedicated to preserving and promoting the poetic legacy of the city.