Enter Poem

What does it mean to live brightly, even if it doesn’t last?In this episode, we enter First Fig — a four-line masterpiece by Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892–1950), one of America’s most luminous and unruly poetic voices.My candle burns at both ends;It will not last the night;But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends—It gives a lovely light!Through Millay’s words, Amy reflects on the autumnal art of burning — how the season turns, glows, and gives itself away before surrendering to winter’s quiet & white

Born on 4th October 1856, Dhani Ram Chatrik is often called the father of modern Panjabi poetry.In this episode, we step into Chatrik’s Dohra — a deceptively simple folk-style poem that opens into a tender meditation on life, death, and what we truly take with us when we leave:ਦੋਹੜਾ - ਧਨੀ ਰਾਮ ਚਾਤ੍ਰਿਕ (1876 -1954) ਛਡ ਤ੍ਰਿੰਞਣ, ਕਰ ਸੁੰਞਾ ਵਿਹੜਾ ਤੁਰ ਤੁਰ ਜਾਵਣ ਸਈਆਂ, ਇਕ ਗਈਆਂ, ਇਕ ਡੋਲੇ ਚੜ੍ਹੀਆਂ, ਇਕ ਦਾਜ ਸਮੇਟਣ ਪਈਆਂ, ਅਸਾਂ ਭਿ ਜਾਣਾ, ਢੋਲਣ ਆਇਆਂ, ਪਰ ਚਰਖਾ ਕਿਉਂ ਚਾਈਏ ? ਓਨੀਆਂ ਤੰਦਾਂ ਆਪਣੀਆਂ ਨੇ, ਜਿੰਨੀਆਂ ਕੱਤੀਆਂ ਗਈਆਂ ।

In this episode we dive into a poem that turns a poolside scene into a profound meditation on love.Hero by Saraswati NagpalPina coladas are served but you continueto perambulate in the pool, past goggle-eyed kidsdiving for pennies, young lovers smooching, andthe fuchsia-clad selfie poser I’m rolling my eyes at.Onward you go, saviour of ditzy bees, drowningdragonflies, delusional spiders, your tender, cuppedhands scooping them from despair to dry tile.In the end, isn’t that love? To carry the fragile

In this episode, we turn to Lucille Clifton, the beloved American poet known for her compact, searing truths. We read her poem “rosh hashanah” from The September Suite, written in the week following 9/11, and reflect on what remains after the disaster:I bear witness to no thing More human than hateI bear witness to no thing More human than loveApples and honey Apples and honeyWhat is not lost Is paradiseIf you’d like to donate to the 2025 Punjab flood relief, you can refer to these NGOs working on

In this episode, we turn to Shah Hussain — the 16th-century sufi poet remembered for his fearless, timeless voice. We focus on one of his most searing kafis, “Buriyān, buriyān, buriyān ve lokā” talking about wounds sharper than swords, and the spiritual yearning that comes with the path of love.I’m joined by Radhika Sood Nayak, A singer and composer whose love for Sufi music was first kindled by the 17th-century mystic Baba Bulleh Shah’s poetry. Beginning with the Mumbai Kabir Festival, she has

What does a world without birds sound like? In this episode of Enter Poem, I sit down with poet Kunjana Prashar to wander through her surreal and devastating poem: Poem With No Birds in ItIn this imagined landscape, cuckoo clocks hang upside down, insects inherit the soundscape, and grief becomes so heavy that binoculars are broken in mourning. We talk about what inspired this poem, its strange and tender imagery, texture, sounds and emotional landscapes.Kunjana Parashar is a poet from Mumbai. Her

What if pain wasn't something to flee, but something to feel all the way through? In this episode, we enter Kahlil Gibran’s meditation on pain—from The Prophet—and explore the textures, sounds, and elemental metaphors that make this poem less about suffering and more about becoming.Enter Poem is a slow, soft space to feel poetry. To fall in love with poems. Hosted by poet and writer Amy Singh, this podcast opens the door to poems that arrive just when we need them. In each episode, we enter the

Enter Poem is a slow, soft space to feel poetry. To fall in love with poems. Hosted by poet and writer Amy Singh, this podcast opens the door to poems that arrive just when we need them. In each episode, we enter the heart of a poem, and let it enter ours.Whether it's a poem Amy has chosen or one loved by a guest, Enter Poem invites you to feel deeply, wonder freely, and linger in language. It’s for those who believe poetry isn’t just meant to be read—it’s meant to be experienced.The first episode