Kabita Theke Michile by Ashok Mitra [Hardcover]

"The collection's title essay begins with the line, 'Many young men leave after writing many poems.' The first sentence contains a sharp rebuke, which intensifies throughout the essay: 'I can no longer find Bangladesh in poetry,' because poets are now detached from society. They indulge in a leisurely boat ride with words like 'yours' and 'mine,' as if they have no responsibility towards society. This essay's core message, and the collection's as well, is that the self-obsession of viewing the world through a mirror, detached from society, is worthy of extreme disdain.

The collection spans nearly two decades, from 1957 to 1974, and includes sixteen brilliant essays chronicling the disgrace of socially conscious individuals becoming socially isolated. Those who speak of changing society have also become engrossed in empty wordplay and aimless pedantry ('Marx without poetry'). In multiple discussions on literature, this social consciousness serves as a precise touchstone. Alongside, there is a critique of the dark times, such as the essay 'Adyashakti-Mahashakti-Kalikakatha' written in 1972.

Throughout the collection, self-examination repeatedly emerges, capable of mercilessly stating, '... I excel in betrayal, today I am in the procession, tomorrow I may fire cannons at the same procession to repay my debt of consciousness.' The indulgence in self-criticism does not end there; immediately, one hears, 'Yet in the procession, in the hope that my consciousness will become purer and purer through generations, one day my consciousness will forget its middle-class vested interests.' The social detachment of Bengalis has multiplied manifold, and so has their self-obsession. Therefore, this collection is even more relevant nearly three decades after its first publication."