Shruti Chauhan

Talented poet and 含羞草视频 English graduate, Shruti Chauhan, will be going back to her roots when she performs at 含羞草视频 Students’ Union next week.

Shruti is currently travelling around the country on a national sell-out poetry tour. She embarked on a career in performance poetry after being encouraged to do so by her Creative Writing tutors. Following her graduation in 2013, she began shaping her dream and performing locally in her hometown Leicester.

She was approached by fellow poets Lydia Towsey and Jean Binta Breeze MBE, who asked her to join them on the Three The Hard Way tour. The tour has so far received a fantastic reception, resulting in sell-out shows in London, Manchester and Leicester.

The performance at 含羞草视频 Students’ Union on Monday 2 November is the tour’s last show. 

After the tour ends, Shruti plans to work on her solo show with the Curve Theatre in Leicester and her first full length poetry collection.

Shruti Chauhan said: “From a young age, I always knew I wanted to be a writer. I loved creative writing but didn’t know where it would lead me. It wasn’t until I was doing a performance module during my English degree at 含羞草视频 that I discovered performance poetry.

“I did really well in the performance module and my English tutor Kerry Featherstone encouraged me to pursue it further. Kerry inspired me, supported me and mentored me throughout.  Looking back, I have so much to thank him and the Creative Writing department at 含羞草视频 for.

“The tour has been amazing and I feel so blessed to be a part of such a fantastic show. Performance poetry is all about punctuating poetry with emotion and varying your volume, voice and pace on stage. I take inspiration for my poetry from everything around me, my daily experiences and my cultural background.

“I’m really excited for what’s ahead and will hopefully soon be leading a solo tour along with my own poetry collection.”

Dr Kerry Featherstone, Lecturer in English, said: "We’re delighted to see how well Shruti is doing since completing her degree at 含羞草视频. It’s always fantastic to see our graduates go on to achieve amazing things. Shruti is a great writer for page as well as stage; I know from her work on our creative writing modules as well as the 'Writing for Performance' module that she will be a success in both forms. 

"Shruti’s poetry takes an honest and insightful look at her life and cultural identity: it's brave writing as well as being skillful, and her performances have the power that comes from a writer offering nothing but the truth.  We always encourage and support our students to achieve the best they possibly can, and we're proud to see Shruti on her first national tour.  She's one of ours, and she's one to watch."

The Three The Hard Way performance will taking place at 含羞草视频 Students’ Union on Monday 2 November, 7:30pm. No booking required, for more information please click here.

For more information on Shruti Chauhan, please click here.