Sonam Chhoki, master haijin and editor interviewed by Vidya Venkatramani, part 2

1. VV – You have attended the haiku festival at Mumbai in 2014. How was your experience and what impressions do you carry of the Indian haiku scenario?

SC – I was jet-lagged on my way home from Europe. Unable to sleep I wondered how could I possibly cope. But the kindness of the poets reassured me. Raamesh was at the airport as I stumbled into the humid warmth of a Mumbai night. Kala took me around the shops in Sion to get a “local” SIM card. The South Indian cuisine at the Guest House was heaven-sent and the cups-after-cups of chai was the perfect stimulant for this travel-weary visitor. I was rather taken by how enthusiastic and engaged the students of SIES College of Arts, Science and Commerce, were. Within a very small window of time in the…