Mamatha Arasikkeri's latest and much appreciated poem in my English Translation...

I became a flood And they called me fervent I became a tsunami And they called me arrogant I poured in raindrops And they called me perplexed I got dried up And they called me infertile I became a wave And they played with me I became a rivulet And they said “beautiful” Alas, How many barricades To a flowing river! Don’t they know that It only takes a moment for her To wash away those barricades ? From Kannada: Mamatha Arasikere To English: Uday Itagi

Review on my book Libya Diary by Prof: Channagowda

Book Name: Libya Diary Author: Uday Ittagi Language: Kannada Genre: Travel Document Publication Date: 2018 Media Type: Print (ISBN 9788193901656) Pages: 152 Price: 140 About the Author: Uday Itagi is an English teacher who has cultivated writing as a hobby. Initially, he started writing poems and started posting on his blog, later his experience as a teacher for 8 years in Libya and the political upheavals that took place in Libya inspired him to write the present book. Presently he works as a principal of a college in a small town in the state of Karnataka. Summary: The book is about the author’s experience of his life in Libya and about the events that took place in the background of the Arab spring and the political upheavals and the dethroning of Mohammed Gadaffi which ended in the brutal killing of Gadaffi who was a charismatic leader. Cortical Evaluation: It is an excellent book that records the personal experience of the author besides throwing light on Libyan society. The book records the fate of Libya in the background of the rebellion that took place to overthrow Gadaffi; which was propped up by western imperialistic interests under the guise of ushering in democracy and human rights protection. The book is the result of the author’s observations made in his 8 years of experience as a teacher at an undergraduate level. He has taken pains to interact with several people and made extensive research before putting his thoughts into words, he has objectively tried to look at the achievements and failures of Libyan leader Mohammed Gadaffi. He seems to throw his weight in favor of Gadaffi as against the NATO intervention that happened to overthrow Gadaffi which culminated in the brutal killing of Gadaffi. The author speaks of his anxieties when he took up the job in distant Libya. He talks of disillusionment when he was posted to a village called Ghat a village which is 650 Km away from Sabah one of the five main cities in Libya. The book provides a first-hand glimpse of the life of the Libyan people. Their food habits their obsession with Indian Hindi movies and their impact on young minds and their frank admission that the Hindi movies have inspired them to fall in love. The author also talks of our news channels which at the time of Gadaffi’s fall aired anti Gadafi’s views blatantly without verifying the facts. The fact that every village in Libya invariably had a post office, a bank, and a hospital gives credit to Gadaffi who seems to have been instrumental in fairly modernizing Libya. By Prof: Channagowda