{"id":343568,"date":"2023-05-16T02:00:30","date_gmt":"2023-05-16T07:30:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tehelka.com\/?p=343568"},"modified":"2023-05-16T02:01:24","modified_gmt":"2023-05-16T07:31:24","slug":"writing-limericks-nonsense-rhymes-to-beat-covid-19-blues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/writing-limericks-nonsense-rhymes-to-beat-covid-19-blues\/","title":{"rendered":"Writing limericks, nonsense rhymes to beat Covid-19 blues"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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New Delhi-based sociologist, Dipankar Gupta\u2019s book \u2013 LOCKDOWN Limericks and Rhymes, was written during the lockdown days. To quote him, \u201cIn those days of gloom, I found writing limericks and nonsense rhymes a great stress reliever. They also\u00a0 helped in shrugging off\u00a0 the frustration one feels when people lose all sense of\u00a0 civic obligations and flout Covid 19\u00a0 appropriate behaviour wantonly\u2026\u201d
A book review by Humra Quraishi<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BOOK REVIEW<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Title of the book \u2013LOCKDOWN Limericks\u00a0 and\u00a0 Rhymes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author- Dipankar Gupta<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Illustrator –  Disha Chakraborty<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publisher \u2013 LG   Publishers Distributors<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pages \u2013 96<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Price \u2013 Rs 495<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lockdown days changed us all \u2026brought along changes amongst those of us who were fortunate enough to have survived that disastrous phase. In fact, not just survived but many of the \u2018survivors\u2019 saw to it that each pass day was spent  not in moaning and mourning,  but in indulging in creativity to its fullest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One such person is the well-known New Delhi-based sociologist, Dipankar Gupta. His book \u2013 LOCKDOWN Limericks and Rhymes, was written during the lockdown days. To quote him, \u201cIn those days of gloom, I found writing limericks and nonsense rhymes a great stress reliever. They also  helped in shrugging off  the frustration one feels when people lose all sense of  civic obligations and flout Covid 19  appropriate behaviour wantonly\u2026As all indulgences in imagination require no higher authority for approval, I  gave free reign to my  limited abilities in composition\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So here comes this limericks-rhymes book by sociologist Dipankar Gupta, who has been earlier writing extensively on castes, peasants, modernity and citizenship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And as I have been reading these limericks and rhymes well tucked in this book, what caught attention are the illustrations that go along. Absolutely compatible. Highlighting the verse. Illustrations so well done that one keeps gazing at them whilst reading the accompanying verse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dipankar Gupta has chosen a diverse range, focusing on what the corona virus did or rather  undid for the human being. The characters he chooses to relay the varying thoughts and expressions and realities range from Chengiz Khan to our everyday ordinary folk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leaving you with Gupta\u2019s this verse:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Slumdog Limericks \/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Four of us live in a slum zone,\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a tiny room, never alone\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But we keep, without fuss,\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social distance between us,\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we talk long distance on the phone.\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washing hands for 20 seconds is a  joke.\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s no taps in homes of  us  folks.\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have so little time\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To soap off the grime,\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That dirt sticks to us like a cloak.\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Always cough or sneeze into tissues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trash them after to stop misuse.\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or else, we are also told\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use your elbows fold,\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But you can\u2019t cut that off like refuse.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leaving you with a few opening lines from his verse titled \u2013<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chengiz Khan, the Wise\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his days, great Genghis Khan\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Went to Poland via Isfahan\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bulgaria and Romania\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And  Transoxania\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But he never set foot in Wuhan\u2026\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New Delhi-based sociologist, Dipankar Gupta\u2019s book \u2013 LOCKDOWN Limericks and Rhymes, was written during the lockdown days. To quote him, \u201cIn those days of gloom, I found writing limericks and nonsense rhymes a great stress reliever. They also\u00a0 helped in shrugging off\u00a0 the frustration one feels when people lose all sense of\u00a0 civic obligations and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[650,23,2205],"tags":[16619,16707],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/343568"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=343568"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/343568\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":343589,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/343568\/revisions\/343589"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=343568"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=343568"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=343568"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}