Hands: How They Make or Break History

Handmade. Hand-me-down. Hands down. Heavy-handed. Handsy. Handyman. Sleight of hand. On the other hand. We can go on… The hand is not simply a body part. The variations of use of 'hand' in the English language is proof of this itself! The hand is a metonym, a synecdoche, a prayer, an enabler of touch, a cultural symbol, a political gesture apart from being a necessary vehicle of everyday movement and utility and labour. In a way, our hands carry our very own personal histories, if not of the wider world.

Join us in this generative poem writing workshop (open to writers across all levels). We will discuss poems that celebrate this often overlooked body part and we will try 'our hand' at generating some written material. Come empty-handed if you wish or bring along a notebook and a pen!

Workshop Aims & Objectives

• We will discuss works from a range of poets such as Tim Seibles, Anya Silver and Imtiaz Dharker. This is an exploratory workshop where you will work with the idea of constructing your thoughts on paper.
• We will discuss a few of the literary techniques used in the poems from the perspective of writer & reader.
• The close reading of the poems will be paired with thoughtful writing prompts and questions to help you take a stab at the blank page with a poem (or a piece of written material) of your own.
• You will also have the opportunity to share your work and ask for feedback (optional).
• Last but not the least, the workshop is open to writers of all levels. We aim to foster an environment of comfort and kindness to encourage participants to bring their authentic selves to the page.

Who are the workshop hosts?

Saranya Subramanian is a poet, writer and theatre practitioner based in Bombay. She is a MFA graduate from the University of San Francisco and her writing has been published in Frontline, Lit Hub, The Caravan, Outlook, Vayavya, Aainanagar, Scroll, The Bombay Literary Magazine and elsewhere. Her essay, "The Cockroach and I" was published by Penguin Random House after winning runner up to the Financial Times/Bodley Head Essay Prize 2020. In 2024, she was finalist for the Best of the Net awards. Saranya runs "The Bombay Poetry Crawl", an archival research space dedicated to the 20th century Bombay Poets.

Vasvi Kejriwal is a poet, writer, former lawyer and literary researcher. Her work has previously been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and her writing has also been published in Frontline. Her poems have been published in Rattle, Nimrod International Journal, SWWIM Everyday, Mekong Review, Usawa Literary Review, The Bombay Literary Magazine and elsewhere. Her work was also shortlisted for the Troubadour International Poetry Prize 2022. Inspired by the concept of William Sieghart's "The Poetry Pharmacy", she runs a pop-up service, "Poem Remedies", which made its debut at Soho House Mumbai. She curates the art and poetry for "Fresh Mint" (Instagram) during her free time and curates poetry trails around the lives of poets in cities (previous poets have included Imtiaz Dharker and Leonard Cohen).