Different people express their emotions in different ways, some prefer meditating, while some prefer talking to someone and others let their feelings out by writing. Writing connects people with their inner self because while writing down something people may go into deep thinking and realize various things about themselves and life. One such person who pays attention to his inner voice, compares it to his own experiences, and writes it down is Sonnet Mondal.

The most recent collection of poems ‘An Afternoon in My Mind’  by Sonnet Mondal taps on a variety of life’s strings with an unbridled tenderness. The poems in this collection have a strong metaphorical flavor, a subtle presentation, and pure lyricism. Each poem in the collection seems to echo his perceptions and flows down through his breath into the paper. The echo has a synergy with societal consciousness at times, and journeys to his inner history with heartfelt stories of individuals and places at other times.

The volume published by Copper Coin publishing contains seventy-five poems with a beautiful cover illustration by G. Gopikrishnan. The book is accompanied by a nostalgic soundtrack that does not disturb but rather harmonizes with the lingering pictures of the past. The poems depict a rural road taken by the poet and demonstrate how time repeats itself in a cyclical fashion in a man’s life. The poet takes a meditative approach to a restless world, accentuating everyday objects such as a trident in ‘The Trident and the Tea Seller,’ the aroma of biscuits in ‘The Biscuit Factory,’ and a fishing rod in ‘An Afternoon In My Mind.’ There are no foreign motifs in his poetry. They deal with thought-provoking issues about our observable world but through the eyes of a mystic. 

Talking about the inspiration behind writing, Sonnet Mondal said, “Writing allows me to express my inner self and brings calm to my soul. ‘An Afternoon in My Mind’ is a compilation of my musings and memories. Many of my poems are inspired by situations or people I have encountered in my daily life. I believe that the world around us is extraordinarily fascinating; the species, people, and environment are all unique in their own way. We can perceive a lot from our circumstances and environment if we just pay attention to them, which is precisely what I do while writing poems.’’

The collection offers profoundly serene poems that lead you on a trip from one home to the next. ‘Each poem in this book is a house, its hospitable doors open to the consolations of recall and remembrance,’ poet Ranjit Hoskote writes about the book. In addition, the book also includes poems that express humanistic values while stressing human difficulty and misfortune. It’s difficult to enter the poet’s mind, but one can easily sense his depth, suffering, and constant desire to gaze out of the window with a heavy but warm heart.