VMPL
New Delhi [India], May 8: In the ever-expanding world of poetry, where countless voices attempt to capture the intricacies of human emotion, Aarti Upadhyay’s Remnants: A Journey through Grief, Love and Becoming stands apart as a quiet but powerful testament to the resilience of the human spirit. This collection is not just a book–it’s a healing experience. With raw vulnerability and remarkable sensitivity, Aarti invites readers into an intimate journey through the corridors of grief, the tenderness of love, the despair of loss, and ultimately, the quiet miracle of healing.
The collection opens like a wound–fresh, aching, honest. It doesn’t hide behind metaphor or cloak pain in elaborate verse. Instead, it strips emotion down to its most primal form. The poems are sparse, almost minimalistic at times, yet that very sparseness carries immense weight. Every word feels deliberate, each line shaped by personal truth and distilled through reflection. There is no excess here–just emotion, unfiltered and real.
Some of these poems, we learn, are inspired by conversations Aarti had with her psychiatrist, Dr. Sarthak Dave–moments where pain was named and understood. This glimpse into therapy adds psychological depth to the collection, reminding us that seeking help is a quiet act of strength and self-love.
What strikes the reader early on is the universality of Aarti’s verse. While clearly rooted in personal experience, the poems do not alienate the reader by being too inward-looking. Rather, they become mirrors–each reader finding themselves somewhere between the lines. Who among us has not grieved, loved, lost, or longed for meaning amid the chaos? In this way, Remnants becomes more than a collection of poetry–it becomes a companion for those navigating the jagged edges of emotion.
The central theme of the collection–grief–is handled with rare tenderness. Aarti does not romanticize it, nor does she drown in it. Instead, she allows grief to breathe, to exist as it is–complex, nonlinear, sometimes ugly, sometimes beautiful. In one poem, she writes of how grief becomes a “shadow stitched into your skin,” an image both haunting and deeply relatable. There is no rush to ‘move on,’ no false promises of closure. Grief, in her words, is not something to be defeated, but something to be understood and carried.
Yet, what makes Remnants truly remarkable is its undercurrent of hope. Amid the sorrow, there are glimmers of light–of love remembered, of moments cherished, of the slow reassembling of a broken self. The poems do not offer easy answers, but they do offer presence. They remind us that healing is not linear, that becoming whole again doesn’t mean erasing the pain, but learning to live beside it.
Love, in all its facets, threads itself through the collection. Romantic love, familial love, self-love–they all find voice in Aarti’s poetry. There are poems that ache with longing, others that throb with the afterglow of once-burning love. Her reflections on love lost are especially poignant–not in the sense of bitterness, but in the quiet dignity of remembrance. She speaks not just of heartbreak, but of what remains after–of the remnants.
The title itself, Remnants, is perfectly chosen. It captures the essence of what the book offers–not a neat narrative arc of pain to redemption, but a mosaic of fragments: some sharp, some smooth, some still bleeding, some already fading. These are the pieces we carry–the ones that define us after we have been changed by love and loss. The ones we rebuild ourselves from.
Stylistically, Upadhyay’s poetry leans toward free verse, and it suits the emotional cadence of the collection. Her use of space, line breaks, and silence is masterful. There are poems where a single word sits isolated, carrying the weight of a whole paragraph. This economy of language, paired with emotional depth, is the hallmark of a poet who understands both the power and fragility of words.
The book is also beautifully produced, with a minimalist aesthetic that reflects the tone of the poems. It does not shout for attention–it waits quietly, gently, patiently. The experience of reading Remnants is much like sitting with an old friend, talking in hushed tones about the things that matter most.
In a world that often demands we “move on,” Remnants allows us to pause. To sit with our sorrow. To honour our stories. To acknowledge that we are made not only of joy and success, but of grief, heartbreak, and silent becoming.
Aarti Upadhyay is a seasoned marketing and communications professional with over 14 years of experience across advertising, IT, and government consulting. A postgraduate from St. Xavier’s College, Ahmedabad, with a PG Certification in Advertising & PR (Online) from MICA, she has consistently fused strategy with storytelling to help brands discover their true voice. Her debut poetry collection, Remnants: A Journey through Grief, Love and Becoming is a deeply personal exploration of love, loss, and resilience–an emotional journey that mirrors her fascination with the inner workings of the human mind. Aarti is a passionate reader, a quiet observer of people and emotions, and a firm believer that dogs embody the purest form of unconditional love.
Remnants: A Journey through Grief, Love and Becoming is a moving, meditative collection that lingers long after the last page is turned. Aarti Upadhyay writes not just with talent, but with heart. Her words offer comfort, validation, and quiet strength. This is poetry as it should be–brave, beautiful, and unforgettable.
Buy it on Amazon: https://www.amazon.in/dp/9369541829
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