A Living Legacy: An Interview with Saleem Peeradina

Pramila Venkateswaran

Pramila Venkateswaran SUNY Nassau

Keywords: poetry, literature, multicultural, postcolonial

Abstract

In this interview with poet Saleem Peeradina, we get a glimpse into the process of decolonization in the history of Indian poetry written in English and also witness the effect of immigration on Indian poetry in the North American diaspora. We get insights into Peeradina’s poetics, his nurturing of the muse while dealing with the rigors of teaching, and, most importantly, his inspirations and challenges resulting from his distance from home.

Author Biography

Pramila Venkateswaran, SUNY Nassau

Pramila Venkateswaran, poet laureate of Suffolk County, Long Island, and author of Thirtha (Yuganta Press, 2002) Behind Dark Waters (Plain View Press, 2008), Draw Me Inmost (Stockport Flats, 2009), and Trace (Finishing Line Press, 2011), is an award winning poet who is a Professor of English and Women’s Studies at Nassau Community College, NY. Author of numerous essays on poetics as well as creative non-fiction, she is also the 2011 Walt Whitman Birthplace Association Long Island Poet of the Year.