The poetic side of Ramalinga Raju

'My tryst with poetry began when I was 20 years old. And, I continued penning other poems in three to four phases in the last 35 years' says Raju

Despite being busy attending board meetings and chairing business conferences, B Ramalinga Raju, founder and former chairman of erstwhile Satyam Computer Services Limited, had managed to squeeze in some time to try his hand at poetry.

"My tryst with poetry began when I was 20 years old. And, I continued penning other poems in three to four phases in the last 35 years," Raju says in the foreword to his book Naalo Neenu (Introspection). The book was published by Emesco Books in June 2011.

Raju's anthology consists of 56 prose poems in Telugu touching upon all facets of human nature, countering the busy city life, flora and fauna, wilderness etc.

Reminiscing about the literary topics that Raju used to share with her during their early marriage days, his wife Nandini Raju writes in her introduction to the book: "He used to talk about many issues, including what is the origin of life (Big Bang theory), what is the difference between human being and animal (Darwin's evolutionary theory), what is time (theory of relativity). I used to argue with him on why he should bother himself with such weighty issues at such a young age."

"As I aged with growing knowledge, when I took those poems that lied buried somewhere and started reading them, I have realised that there is a lot of depth behind those words (which I couldn't understand earlier). This book is an attempt to introduce those to you."

Some of the poems penned by Raju draw a clear parallel between real life and his quest for things that don't exist.

For instance, in 'Leni Nalla Pilli' (Nonexistent Black Cat) Raju says:

How long shall I search blindly for a nonexistent black cat in a dark room

What secrets shall I search for in this bubble-like life

How long shall I search behind those unchanged stars in that static sky

How long shall I search blindly for a nonexistent black cat in a dark room

How could I predict that the ticket among those lots that I didn't buy would hit the jackpot

How could I hand pick oases in this deserted life

How long shall I search blindly for a nonexistent black cat in a dark room

In his another poem titled 'Sakshyalu (Proofs) Raju talks about truth, proofs and evidences, on doing experiments in search of truth, and seeing everything with suspicious eyes until it is proved etc. Was the intention to commit a fraud hovering in his mind for years? Read on:

Senses are doors to Satyam (truth)

Proofs are roads to knowledge

One should experiment in search of truth and preserve cleverly those experiments

Those experiments should unearth the truth

Should separate it like water from milk

Should chisel the shape of truth, bit by bit

Those proved truths should remain for posterity

Senses are doors to Satyam (truth)

Proofs are roads to knowledge

Whatever your conciseness says truth should prevail

Until proved you should see everything with suspicious eyes

This search for truth should continue forever

Man should fly to the sky with the strength of truth and reach heights that can't see

One should do gimmicks that couldn't be captured by intelligence

Human race should be revered

Senses are doors to Satyam (truth)

Proofs are roads to knowledge