Why I like Bendre More Than Kuvempu

It is totally wrong to compare two great writers. That is NOT what I am doing here. We all have our favorites, likes, dislikes and prejudices. I just want to tell you why I like da. ra. Bendre much more than Kuvempu. Both are great writers, no two words about that. But, I personally consider Bendre to be one of the greatest ever writers in modern Kannada literature. Infact, if you ask me, he ranks number one in my list of 20th centruy Kannada writers.

What I like about Bendre is the way he creates magic by using very simple words. An illiterate can sing and enjoy the poems. That is the beauty of Bendre poetry. Here is one simple example of why I like Bendre more than Kuvempu:

Let us say I am seeing red all over. Romance is in the sky, wind and water. I want to sing something really nice to my beloved. Which one of the following two songs do I choose?

ಸೋರ್ಮುಡಿಯದೆ ಕರ್ಮುಗಿಲಿನ ಬಾನು
ಕಡೆಗಣ್ಣೋಟದಿ ಮಿಂಚಲು ನೀನು
ಚುಂಬನ ದಾನಕೆ ಪ್ರೇಮದ ಪಾನಕೆ
ಕಾತರವಾಗಿಹ ಚಾತಕ ನಾನು

OR

ಮಲ್ಲಿಗಿ ಮಂಟಾಪದಾಗ
ಗಲ್ಲ ಗಲ್ಲ ಹಚ್ಚಿ ಕೂತು
ಮೆಲ್ಲ ದನಿಲೆ ಹಾಡೋಣಾಂತ
ಯಾರಿಗೂ ಹೇಳೋಣೂ ಬ್ಯಾಡ ಯಾರಿಗೂ

For me, it is a no brainer. I would obviously choose the latter. And, that’s why I like Bendre more than Kuvempu.

The biggest gift we have is mother nature. The crests and depths, hills and valleys, blues and greens are magnificent. And it is truly beautiful to enjoy a poet’s creation celebrating nature. How about these two?

ಚಿಂತಾತೀತಂ ಭಾಷಾತೀತಂ
ಬುದ್ಧಿಗಸಾಧ್ಯಂ ಹೃತ್ಸಂವೇದ್ಯಂ
ಭಾವತರಂಗಗಳೇಳುತಿವೆ
ವಿವಿಧಾಕಾರವ ತಾಳುತಿವೆ
ಗಗನ ಮಹಾಮನದಿ

OR

ಇದ್ದಲ್ಲಿ ಇರು ಹೂವೆ
ಗಾಳಿ ಹೊಳೆಯೊಳು ನಾವೆ
ತೂಗಾಡುತಿರುವಂತೆ
ತೂಗುತ್ತಿರು

Again, it gives me so much pleasure to sing the latter just because it’s direct, simple and yet so full of life.

Kuvempu just cannot use simple words. Even if he did, the poems are quite complex and does not convey the message that easily. Take these two examples:

 ಎನಿತು ದಿನ ನಿನ್ನ ನಾನೆದುರು ನೋಡಲಿ
ನಿನ್ನನಗಲಿ ಕೆಳದಿ ಕವಿತೆ ಬೆಂದು ಬಾಡಲಿ

OR

ಒಲವೆಂಬ ಹೊತ್ತಿಗೆಯ ಓದ ಬಯಸುವ ನೀನು
ಬೆಲೆ ಎಷ್ಟು ಎಂದು ಕೇಳುವೆಯ ಹುಚ್ಚಾ?

The first one is from Kuvempu and the second one is from Bendre. Infact, the first one above, is one of my favorites. But, even with simple words, look how Bendre can make you live the life of a poet, more than Kuvempu.

One other point about Bendre is the brilliance in rhythm. The 8 beat ta ki Ta – ta ka – ta ki Ta in the following lines is unique and superb:

ನಿನಗೆ ಪೊಡ ಮಡುವೆ
ನಿನ್ನ ನುಡು ತಡುವೆ
ಏಕೆ ಎಡ ತಡೆವೆ
ಸುರಿದು ಬಾ

You really feel like Ganga is powerful, glowing and flowing, don’t you?

Before I conclude, I will say that every rule has exceptions. Kuvempu‘s works for kids, which include poems like ಬೊಮ್ಮನಹಳ್ಳಿಯ ಕಿಂದರಿಜೋಗಿ and ದೇವರ ಪೆಪ್ಪರಮೆಂಟೇನಮ್ಮ are brilliant. And, till today I am trying to figure out what Bendre meant when he said ಆವು, ಈವು, ನಾವು, and ನೀವು. He has an explanation, if you want to believe that.

Again, I am NOT stating that Bendre is better than Kuvempu. I am just stating that I like Bendre more than Kuvempu and citing some examples here, that’s all.

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