U.S.-based South Asian literary collective, Matwaala / Matwaala

Matwaala, a U.S.-based South Asian literary collective, concluded its 10th anniversary year in 2025 with a nationwide series of 20 events that brought together poets, writers, filmmakers, and arts institutions to amplify South Asian and poets-of-color voices across the United States.

Programs were hosted in cities including Chicago, New York, Washington, D.C., Austin and Long Island, with several events also held online.

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Among the key initiatives were Matwaala Mool Swar capstone talks featuring former U.S. Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith and physicist-poet Subhash Kak; anthology readings from Matwaala Sangrah: Sing Slivered Tongue, edited by Lopamudra Basu and Feroza Jussawalla; and the Matwaala Monsoon Maker Awards. 

The awards were presented to poets, writers and partner institutions including the South Asia Institute (SAI), Chicago, the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC), New York, and poet Ravi Shankar. Poet Indran Amirthanayagam was named Poet of Honor for 2025.

A major highlight of the anniversary year was Matwaala Mehfilm 2025, described as the first South Asian Diaspora Poetry Film Festival. The inaugural screening was held on Oct. 4 at the South Asia Institute in Chicago, followed by a second screening at IAAC in New York City.

According to Matwaala, the festival brought together 29 short poetry films created in response to poems, using visual styles ranging from photo-journalistic and expressionist approaches to animation. Four of the films were created using artificial intelligence tools.

Reflecting on the collaboration, poet Kashiana Singh said, “The collaboration between Matwaala, the South Asian Diaspora Poetry Collective and SAI highlighted their shared mission to promote cross-cultural dialogue, artistic exchange, and representation of underrepresented voices in the arts.”

SAI founders Shireen and Afzal Ahmad welcomed the partnership, saying, “As the founders of South Asia Institute we are very proud to have presented the recent Poetry Film Festival, in partnership with Matwaala. 

The collaboration exemplified our mission to support innovative platforms and underscored our dedication to fostering cross-disciplinary artistic exchange and advancing the visibility of South Asian creativity.”

The films were curated over a year by the Matwaala leadership team—Pramila Venkateswaran, Kashiana Singh and Usha Akella—who also contributed their own work to the festival. The roster included films by South Asian poets as well as poets featured in Matwaala’s Poets of Color series, including African American poet Keisha-Gaye Anderson and Palestinian poet Yahya Ashour.

In her opening remarks at the festival, Akella described poetry film as “an osmosis between two genres propelling the written word into a wholistic sensory experience,” adding that the form represents “a magical alchemy pushing poetry far out to be rediscovered in a new way.”

Venkateswaran, whose film Satyagraha examines the legacy of U.S. civil rights leader John Lewis through the lens of Gandhian nonviolence, said the medium goes beyond visual illustration. 

“The filmmaker’s interpretation of the poem in order to create a set of images is a creative activity that complements the poem,” she said, adding that the festival helped establish filmpoems as a recognized genre while capturing the diversity of South Asian culture.

The Chicago screening was followed by a panel discussion with poets and filmmakers, a poetry reading and a reception. During the event, Matwaala leadership presented the Monsoon Maker Award to SAI founders Shireen and Afzal Ahmad and recognized Akella with the Matwaala Founder Award.

Other anniversary initiatives included a poet-in-residence program under the SWWIM Residency with Nina Sudhakar; special Matwaala poetry sections in journals such as Muse India and Setu; the Poets of Color series featuring Jewish and Palestinian poetry panels; and book showcases highlighting new works by Pramila Venkateswaran and Kashiana Singh.

A selection of Mehfilm poetry films is scheduled to be screened at IAAC in New York City and at the Indie Meme Film Festival in Austin in 2026, with Matwaala planning additional screenings in collaboration with educational and cultural institutions.