May 29, 2012
A book launch function was organized recently by the local community on Sunday, May 20 2012 at the Diya Restaurant in Tysons, Virginia, in which well-known poet Dr. Satyapal Anand released a collection of Hindi poems titled “RUBRU”, meaning Face to Face by Mrs. Daler Deol, who writes under the pen name "Aashna."
May 29, 2012
A book launch function was organized recently by the local community on Sunday, May 20 2012 at the Diya Restaurant in Tysons, Virginia, in which well-known poet Dr. Satyapal Anand released a collection of Hindi poems titled “RUBRU”, meaning Face to Face by Mrs. Daler Deol, who writes under the pen name "Aashna."
Dr. Satyapal Anand and Aashna, author of RUBRU
Dr. Anand, who is author of nearly dozen books of poetry in Urdu and five volumes of poetry in English, praised “RUBRU” as the work of a natural poet. "Aashna does not struggle for choosing the right words. They flow naturally."
In supporting the book, famous poet and lyricist Gulzar sahib said in a special message addressed to Aashna" "You have aligned yourself with the branch of poetry and with God's grace the sun's rays will ripen you and your poetry will also reach its fruition. Many, many congratulations that you have chosen to tread the literary path."
The book launch event quickly turned into a mushaira / kavi sammelan with recitations by Aashna and other invited poets. Dr. A. Abdullah of Aligarh Alumni Association, who facilitated the event, while introducing the poet mentioned many of her achievements as an author of three books on political theory and her work as a teacher of Indian languages and culture.
Meenu Sidhu, singer and community activist, read one of Aashna's poems that she had received as a gift for her wedding anniversary. "I could not have asked for a better gift than this one," Meenu added. Dr. Aruna Bhargava, author of children's books and executive director of I Create Inc., a Virginia company, read Aashna's poem Aks (Reflection) and explained in detail several innovative metaphors and similes used by the poet for creating a picture of nature's beauty that had great visual appeal.
Aashna read several of her poems but the poem that emotionally stunned the audience was Sunn Suntalees (Year 47) about partition of India that uses creating-pictures-with-words technique at its very best. Aashna's poem about World Peace in which she compares "Peace" or Aman to a little girl who has been abducted by the forces of darkness, making this world a dangerous place to live, was also widely appreciated.
Among the invited poets, Rashmi Sanan, entertained and impressed the audience with her melodious voice and high literary quality of her ghazals. Poet Rakesh Khandelwal, a senior local poet, made great impact with his style of recitation and masterly Hindi diction.
Special to MYDOSTI.COM – By Surinder Deol
