Kuwaiti wins through to next level of TV poetry show

Jury fawned over Kuwaiti versifier Nasser al Ajami as he won through to the third stage of Million's Poet on Wednesday night.

ABU DHABI // Nasser al Ajami, a Kuwaiti, won through to the third stage of Million's Poet on Wednesday night after a performance that had the jury fawning. Six poets battled it out during the second stage of the popular Nabati poetry television programme, and recited poems that dealt with a range of social and political issues. There was even a bit of comedy. Mr al Ajami's verses struck a serious note: "How many Mahdis are among us, but they are not the ones we are waiting for," was his opening line, which referred to ongoing conflicts in Kuwait. Mahdi refers to an Islamic leader who is said to bring peace to the world upon his return.

While Mr al Ajami was selected to go on to the next round by the jury, another of the poets will be chosen by the public later this week to also progress. Those five are Halima Abadi from Jordan; Raed al Shaibani from Saudi Arabia; Obeid al Hamli from the UAE; Ali al Muri from Qatar; and Masoud al Waili from Saudi Arabia. Three more episodes, featuring six poets each, will run before the show moves into its third stage.

Sultan al Amimi, a member of the jury and director of the Poetry Academy for the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage, said of Mr al Ajami's poetry: "Every verse was like a sea shell; when you open it, you find the inside more beautiful than the one before. There was clear, beautiful coherence." Mr al Waili's poem, which compared poetry to a virus, like swine flu, that one catches, drew guffaws from the audience and had the poet himself laughing. One member of the jury, Dr Ghassan al Hassan, praised Mr al Waili for his energetic presentation and for mentioning current social issues. But other members of the panel criticised him for referring to too many animals.

Mr al Amimi said the references moved the piece away from poetry. Miss Abadi started her performance by dedicating a few verses to Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, the chairwoman of the UAE General Women's Union, for her support of women. Her poem, which presented the pain of parents left in nursing homes, painted vivid images of sadness. Phrases such as "the garden trees got depressed and the jasmines cried out to the house", and "Where has the honour gone?" helped listeners draw mental pictures, Dr al Hassan said.

"The topic was very humane, as the case usually is with Halima. We only hear topics from her that are deeply social and emotional," he said. But he said the second verse of the poem bogged down because it did not rhyme. "The sad phrases and the sound of the cries were very coherent to the text, also the tone changing to express the cries went in harmony with the poem's atmosphere," Mr al Amimi added.

The poets competing next Wednesday are Hameed al Maradi from Yemen; Roba al Douekat from Jordan; Satam bin Batla from Saudi Arabia; Falah al Mawreqi from Kuwait; Mohammed al Saeed from Saudi Arabia; and Mohammed al Rashaidi from Sudan. [e-mail]