‘Poems lend themselves to interpretation’

Poetry is all about feelings, emotions and relationships. “There is a universal appeal about poems, which is probably why my friends urged me to publish my poems,” says Karthik, with a smile. “As a poet, I say things in the abstract, and after reading it, people connect with it, delve into the meaning, interpret it in their own way, and tell me that they have felt or experienced exactly as I have stated in my poem, and that is a great feeling,” he says. But what inspires him to break into a stanza? “I think everyone has a streak of selfishness in them, in so far as they want to record their observations and views. Or change the world. All of us have opinions, don’t we?”, he asks, adding, “Everyday things inspired me, and I began writing poetry at least 12 years ago. When you are young, you feel everything intensely. It is only when you grow older you get that chalo, chalta hai attitude.” 

How receptive are people, to poems, I wonder. “I too would have thought like that, but surprisingly, there are a number of people interested in not only buying your book and reading the poems, but also to discuss and debate at length,” says Karthik. Acceding to popular requests, he is holding a special poetry-reading session of his book on July 30 at the residence of dancer Anita Ratnam. The by-invite event will also have Saranya Gopinath singing a couple of the poems, set to tune by her. People keep saying ‘poetry is not everyone’s cup of tea,’ but there is a constituency for it in Chennai, points out Karthik. 

Can we expect his next book soon? “You can expect my next performance in cinemas or on stage,” he quips. Karthik has been roped in to play a cop in AL Vijay’s next film Karu , starring Naga Shouriya and Sai Pallavi. Apart from two other films, Karthik is also prepping for a role in 'It runs in the family' , a typical British farcical comedy, to be directed by Nilu, for Madras Players on September 22, 23 and 24. “I know what I can do and what I would like to do. I only accept roles that I know will work for me,” says Karthik, leaving me a little envious. How many of us get to do what we want?