Imtiaz Dharker is a Pakistani-born British poet and filmmaker. She also works as an artist. She has thus far written seven books of poetry, the most recent in 2018, Luck is the Hook. Each of these is self-illustrated. Her work is often featured on the GCSE English syllabus. Her poems often engage with themes of freedom, cultural displacement, and gender.
‘Tissue’ by Imtiaz Dharker is a beautifully thoughtful poem about the power paper has in human lives and how, by understanding it, one can also understand humanity.
Paper that lets the light
shine through, this
is what could alter things.
‘A Century Later’ reflects on the modern ways violent oppression tries to use terror as a form of control and the defiance with which the young women fearlessly oppose it.
The school-bell is a call to battle,
every step to class, a step into the firing-line.
Here is the target, fine skin at the temple,
cheek still rounded from being fifteen.
‘Blessing’ by Imtiaz Dharker is about the importance of water in people’s lives. It uses imagery to depict how cricital this element is to survival.
The skin cracks like a pod.
There never is enough water.
‘Honour Killing’ by Imtiaz Dharker is a poem about the fight for freedom.The freedom of being able to express oneself.
At last I'm taking off this coat,
this black coat of a country
that I swore for years was mine,
that I wore more out of habit
‘In Wales, wanting to be Italian’ captures the universal longing for a different life, identity exploration, and the dreams of youth.
What is it called? Being sixteen
in Wales, longing to be Italian,
to be able to say aloud,
without embarrassment, Bella! Bella!
‘Living Space’ reveals the strength in fragility, transforming a dilapidated home into a symbol of enduring hope.
There are just not enough
straight lines. That
is the problem.
Nothing is flat
‘The Right Word’ explores how labels shape perception, urging empathy over judgment by revealing our shared humanity.
Outside the door,
lurking in the shadows,
is a terrorist.
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