DALJIT NAGRA:So in this poem, I've got a drunk Indian speaker, He's about to come home. It's pay day, he's got paid and he wants to just do some dancing with his wife in the kitchen.
OK? And she's stayed up especially to make his chicken drumsticks for him.
And I mention Pakeezah in this poem. Pakeezah is a 1950s bollywood film. It's the most romantic film so you have to get into the romantic mood.
And Hilda Ogden, she used to be in Coronation Street a while back, a long time ago, and her husband was Stan Ogden and he used to have a big beer barrelled belly he'd stand in the pub, drinking all night.
And in one episode she brings his dinner into the pub and gives it to him. So my speaker is gonna refer to that.
OK? And I'm gonna do it in an Indian accent 'cause when I was growing up Indian accent was made fun of and I want to reclaim it. I love all accents. So it's called "Darling and me."
"The barman's bell done dinging, so I phone the dimply missus.
Putting some gas on cooker bonus pay I bringing.
Downing my drink, I giddily home for Pakeezah record to which we go-go, tango. For my roti to kitchen she rumba.
I tell her of poor Jimmy John In apron, his girlfriend, she bring to pub his plate of chicken pie and dry white potato.
Like Hilda Ogden, 'Here eat your chuffy dinner!'
She huffing off the stage as he tinkle his glass of Guinness.
We say we could never eat in publicity like that. If we did, wife advertisement may need or so a punch and he smile.
I pull her to me, my skating hands on her back. A bolero by Torville and Dean. Giggling with Bhangra arms in air, she falling for lino, till I swing her up in forearm.
Darling is so pirouetty with us. For a whirlwind married month that every night, though by day we work factory hard she always have disco, or drumsticks in pot, hot, waiting for me."
OK, thank you.
Poet Daljit Nagra performs and describes his poem Darling and Me.
He details how the piece brings together pop culture references from the likes of Coronation Street, and the work, life and language of South Asian migrants to the UK.
This is from the series: Contains Strong Language
Teacher viewing recommended prior to use in the classroom
Teacher Notes
Pupils could compare how Daljit Nagra describes the poem before reading it, with the final work.
Do they think the poem effectively conveys his intentions? How does the use of language and verse affect the audience?
Does hearing the poem performed aloud change it's meaning in comparison to reading it from the page?
Curriculum Notes
This clip will be relevant for teaching English Literature.
This topic appears in OCR, Edexcel, AQA, WJEC KS4/GCSE in England and Wales, CCEA GCSE in Northern Ireland and SQA National 4/5 in Scotland.
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