Lezim Khelnari Pore

One more distinctive feature of Sanjay Krishnaji Patil’s present collection is that he has sincerely and deeply studied the entire tradition of Marathi poetry. As a result, he handles the many dimensions of poetic expression with remarkable dynamism and effortless skill.

Sanjay Patil’s poetry is one that embraces all classifications in a single sweeping movement. It is rural. It is Dalit. It transcends religious boundaries. It is metropolitan. Rooted in the robust soil of Maharashtra and the secular ethos of India, his poetry is not merely modern but uniquely contemporary and even avant-garde.

His poetry lays bare the stark realities of brothel districts and portrays the strange, intense impulses of Mumbai with extraordinary force. The mature artist within Patil reaches out to the human mind trapped between loneliness and helplessness, the frenzied spectacle of death and indifference, immense wealth and the sale of the human body, parental affection and love for family life, and devastating cruelty. He gives powerful verbal expression to reality, the grotesque, and the entire spectrum of human emotions.

His commitment to humanity stands on a par with that of Mardhekar, Kolatkar, Surve, and Dhasal. It is therefore beyond doubt that Sanjay Krishnaji Patil’s Lezim Khelnari Por (Children Playing Lezim) will continue to dance freely and vibrantly in the hearts of sensitive readers for a long time to come.

— Dr. Keshav Meshram