Meet Dr. Parvinder Mehta | Poet, educator and scholar

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dr. Parvinder Mehta and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dr. Parvinder Mehta, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I have to say that I never aimed for a creative career actively. Over the years, teaching undergraduate-level writing, literature, and film courses, I have taught my students to apply analysis and critical reading tools to understand how writers persuade and evoke specific feelings to convince us of their perspectives. Through close reading of literary texts, they would understand the intricacies of the written words. I have always loved how words provoke our minds to imagine and think. I am a Sikh American, so I am interested in Sikh issues also. We have very few Sikh writers in the diaspora who write poetry in English, so I know that our representation matters. I wrote my first poem showing a Sikh man wearing a turban. After finishing the poem, I sent it for publication where it was well-received. Getting encouragement from friends and readers, I started writing more poems and found the act of writing poems quite engaging. Thus, began my journey with writing poetry to self-affirm, remember our people’s histories, and learn from what has happened in this post-9/11 world and is currently happening in the 21st century. In essence, my poetry touches upon various experiences that are linked with the experiences of being a minority. My poetry is also about the emotional journey taken by many immigrants, and refugees who wish to dream about a world that not only accepts and acknowledges but also validates them. My poetry is about resistance and rebellion against oppression that subjugates our humanity. The ideas of homes and homelessness, the process of moving from one home to another, while being nostalgic and learning to regroup common ideas that many of us face. I have talked about Sikhs and Sikh experience in a few poems; many of my poems can relate to a teenager who encountered bullying, and communities who suffered hate crimes, racism, and other forms of prejudice. I am grateful that my debut poetry collection, On Wings of Words, is out in this world and has received readerly love from all parts of the world.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My art is an accumulation of emotions, viewpoints, incidents, and experiences that have shaped my life. Throughout my life, I have been inspired by the Sikh ethos of “chardi kalah” which denotes eternal optimism. I have had some experiences that seemed like hurdles in my personal and professional lives, but the spirit of chardi kalah – to never give up has sustained me through these hurdles. To persist despite testing circumstances is to embrace our human strength and courage to continue trying to meet our goals. I am proud of my accomplishments as a wife, a mother, and a teacher committed to lifelong learning, helping others, and building networks of support and encouragement for those in need. Professionally, I enjoy teaching college courses, publishing academic writing as well as writing poems and I hope to continue doing this for the rest of my life. I have learned through the years that challenges are part of this journey that we all take and we must aspire to remain optimistic in the spirit of chardi kalah.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
In childhood, my favorite activity apart from reading was going on long walks in the evening with my sisters. Watching the crimson sky as the sun began to set always inspired and soothed me. Now, living in Michigan, I am reminded of those walks as I walk sometimes watching the sunset. For me, nature spots are always a first preference. Detroit downtown and Belle Isle Park would be an easy choice. Another place I would recommend is the amazing parks that we have here in Michigan. Some of my great memories are those of picnics planned with friends in Kensington Metro Park in Howell and Gallop Park in Ann Arbor. Other places I recommend to my friends are the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), Greenfield Village and Ford’s Rouge Factory tour.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My parents, who are now deceased, have been my advocates in following my passion for literature. Being educators, they both encouraged a passion for reading in me when I was a young child. My sisters in India have supported my writing in many ways. A big shoutout goes to my husband, Manmohan Mehta, who has always been my rock of support. I also want to acknowledge my academic peers and more importantly my students who have provoked my mind in many ways to aspire for a kinder world around us.

Website: https://wayne.academia.edu/ParvinderMehta

Instagram: @parvinder.mehta

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parvinder-mehta-50823b18/

Twitter: @drpmehta

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/parvinder.mehta.3

Other: linktr.ee/drpmehta

Image Credits
Image credit: Manmohan Mehta