The Greenwich Series: Poet’s Corner #2 – Kaleem Khodabux

Livvy Hooper continues her look at the University of Greenwich’s brightest talents; focussing her spotlight on undergraduate poets who featured in the end of year exhibition and reading; these are the ones to watch.

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Over the coming weeks I’ll be getting to know some of the best poets from the University of Greenwich’s Creative Writing poetry programmes, with interviews and excerpts from their debut poetry collections. The majority of these poets have recently finished their studies and are looking to careers in the arts, so I’ll be putting them under the microscope to find out what makes them tick, how they tock, and just why we should be keeping our eye on them.

SPOTLIGHT: KALEEM KHODABUX

Tell us a bit about yourself
Kaleem Khodabux, 21 yrs old, everyone in my family is from Mauritius except me; I was born in Essex where I’ve lived all my life.

How did you ‘get into’ poetry?
I got into poetry through my passion for creative writing at university. I’ve always been into writing scripts for plays and films and writing poetry as a hobby. I was able to develop my craft at University and eventually I realised I was a better poet than a playwright.

So tell us about the collection of poetry you created in your final year – what’s it all about? 
My Hospitalised Lemon is based on my mother’s journey through cancer and what we as a family had to face during those difficult times. The entire collection is from my point of view, for ethical reasons more than anything else, and due to the collection being based on an individual’s ailment, so I had to tread carefully with what I said and how I said it. It also focuses on my own development as a person; how being a full time student and full time carer made me realise skills I never knew I had. The collection is in chronological order, starting from when we first realised something was up with mum’s health (A Broken Chair) all the way to the funeral procedings and what I believe, as a Muslim, is happening to my mother in the after life (Life After Death), with all the tears and laughter in between.

Your collection is obviously a deeply personal one – how does it feel to have written something like that, and to share it with others?
Writing poetry about something so personal was really difficult to start with as I struggled to put events down on paper as they happened. I had to revisit some horribly painful times to figure out what happened in the right order. Having said this, writing about these experiences has really matured my writing poetry, because I was a fan of writing funny poems all the time, which made my writing lack depth and understanding. Being thrown into this situation where you’re trying to finish your second year at university and worry about how you’re going to cope during the final year really made me compose poems that were heartfelt, but still retained the occasional humourous element to lighten the atmosphere when needed. Sharing my experiences with everyone actually really helped me cope with the pressure I was under; instead of explaining my life story i just recited one of these poems and the words communicated everything they needed to know. People sympathised with me not only because it was a sad story about a lad trying to finish his degree whilst losing his mother, but because I was brave enough to stand up and read these poems aloud to people. Some of these were the hardest poems I’ve ever written, but I’ve really enjoyed sharing them with my poetry supervisor, friends, family and the public. It also serves as a great treasure trove of memories of my mother and me in our last year together.

How does it feel to have written a full collection of poetry?
I’ve never written a poetry collection before so it was something I took great pleasure in doing, especially self publishing it in a hardback book with my name on it. It was  so cool seeing the collection for the first time in book form because it was such a huge achievement for me to be able to produce this collection under the circumstances; I know my mother would’ve been really impressed with it. I kept telling her how I was writing this collection and she was really excited to see it. Unfortunately she never got to, but knowing that she wasn’t going to see it gave me that extra push to get it finished to the highest level.

Where do you find your inspiration when writing?
Needless to say my number one inspiration for this collection was my mother; how she was always smiling despite spending most of her last year in a wheelchair. Her amazing spirit was more than enough for me to see the bright side of my situation and pull myself together time and again. The next biggest influence for me when writing was Islam; without it I wouldn’t have shown the same patience that I did as a full time carer and student, and also Islam teachesme that you must look after your parents when they’re sick or reach old age, so all the time my mother spent in hospital, we as a family stayed with her 24/7 helping however we could. My general inspiration for poetry is quite broad though; I like to look to nature sometimes, I look at the earth and what it’s made up of, and use that as a starting point for a poem. I can also get inspired by hobbies like martials arts, video games and stuff like that. Sometimes it could something more random like seeing someone litter or overhearing a conversation at a party.

Who are your biggest influences?
My biggest influences for writing poetry are a lot of classical and romantic poets like Shakespeare, Frederico Garcia Lorca, Octavio Paz, and Ted Hughes to name a few. I really enjoy how the communicate so much to the reader with only a few words. In regards to this collection, some poems were inspired by poets like Elisabeth Bishop (Funeral Sestina) and Robert Hass (Mum).

What’s it been like studying in the beautiful grounds of the Royal Naval College?
Studying on these grounds has been an inspiration all by itself. It’s so gorgeous when the sun is shining but it can be equally dreadful if the weather isn’t so great! It’s such a touristy area and it does give you a great feeling of satisfaction when you see groups of people taking pictures of where you study. Not to mention all the glamour and excitement when a film crew stops by to film, like Pirates of the Caribbean or Thor!

What are your highlights from your time at the University of Greenwich?
Definitely all the friends I’ve made over the three years, all from different backgrounds and different experiences of life. Some people have been through so much but are still eager to get their degree and have a huge thirst for knowledge. Making people laugh is always great; that priceless look of laughter on all of your colleagues faces – and the lecturer! – was something I took great pride in being able to create… at the appropriate time of course.

How does it feel to have finished university? 
It’s inspired me in more ways than I could have hoped for. I feel a lot of relief knowing that it’s over, but at the same time it is quite sad as I won’t be seeing a few friends as often.

What once piece of advice would you give to any would-be poet or writer?
Believe in your work. It might sound quite cheesy, but I say this with a lot of experience. When I didn’t believe in my work that came through when other people read it, they could see I didn’t have any faith in it. Once I started believing in my work, the reception changed for the better. I still see poets before they start reading letting everyone know that it’s bad and nothing creams my corn more than that, especially when the work they read is absolutely amazing! So never do that. Always believe in yourself as a writer, and it will reflect in your work.

So what’s next for you – what are your plans now you’ve finished university? Any projects we should know about?
I will be staying put for the moment in Greenwich, doing a Masters Degree in English Literature starting in September, so that’s quite exciting. I am also planning to expand this particular collection as there is much more I feel is missing, and because it won’t be a moderated academic piece, I can be a bit more blunt and include other perspectives. My poem ‘Literary Psychosis’ is being published in an anthology by United Press called Just My Luck in the next few months, which is so exciting.