Eye-witnesses and messengers
fools, court jesters, tricksters, bards
we could dare mock
the kings and the emperors
with a snarky remark
without fear or flattery
wandering from kingdom to kingdom,
city to city
we are the need of the hour
to speak truth to power.
Griots are a member of a class of travelling poets, musicians and storytellers who maintain a tradition of oral history in parts of West Africa.
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Madras Courier originally ran as a broadsheet with a poetry section. It was a time when readers felt comfortable sharing glimpses of their lives through verse. If you have a poem you’d like to submit, do email us at [email protected].
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