Blending the art of spoken word with the corporate grind

People and culture specialist Sanjana Uppili balances corporate life with poetry performances, aiming to expand Chennai's spoken word community.

People and culture specialist Sanjana Uppili juggles a fast-paced corporate life during the week, managing schedules, employee relations, cultivating a positive work culture in an expanding start-up team. But when the weekend arrives, she switches to the world of spoken word, where she performs her poetry on different stages for the Chennai crowd.

“As a dedicated hobby, it is not something I can pursue after a long workday. Poetry demands so much focus too, so I save it for the weekends,” says Ms. Sanjana.

Since 2020, she has been taking the stage in Chennai, starting with virtual performances for the Mockingbirds event during the COVID-19 pandemic. “It was all about those virtual shows every day during the pandemic,” adds Ms. Sanjana. From there, her stage presence grew; she performed at events including Mahad Productions, An Unexplored Mic, Deleted drafts among others.

Standing on the stage and performing a poem is a release, a form of catharsis for her. Much of her initial works were shaped by grief, a coping mechanism. However, lately, the inspiration for spoken word comes from working at the human resources department, where she is constantly engaging with people and their emotions, and understanding the complexities of human nature. “Now, my poetry reflects the many shades of who we are as humans,” she explains. “The Hibiscus Tree is the favourite poem I have written. It is for my mother.”

While Ms. Sanjana has found her voice in the world of poetry, and at times, the two worlds intersect, she remains committed to her role in the start-up. Having grown alongside the company, she has taken various positions, watching it evolve from a handful of employees to a full-fledged organisation. Poetry, however, remains a personal hobby, never something she sees as work. “I have witnessed incredible poets from our city while judging poetry slams at colleges, but often they are not aware of the city’s poetry community,” she says. “This is why I have taken it upon myself to host poetry events and find fresh talent.”

Through the events she is hosting and plans to host in the future, Ms. Sanjana aims to expand the spoken word and storytelling community in Chennai, just as it has flourished like a festival in other cities. “Many in Chennai still don’t realise that spoken word is a dedicated hobby and performing poetry is an art form,” she says. “Performance arts should not be confined to certain types, and it is time for Chennai’s spoken word scene to level up.”

For this people specialist and poet, consistency is everything in both her worlds. What started as a way to cope with grief has turned into a full-on journey: from performing on stages to hosting and judging poetry competitions across Chennai’s colleges, she is about blending the art of poetry with the grind of daily life, passion and professionalism going hand in hand.