Unlike a traditional epic, Parajuli’s work Letter of a Jailbird does not follow the conventional structure. There’s no invocation of the muses, no supernatural elements, and no heroic valor. There are, however, characters that keep coming and going: Devi and Mukti. And the poet, or the poetic persona, stands close with these two characters, often commenting on their deeds. Both characters are, in fact, epithets expressing attributes true to their characters. Two idealists, they voice their concerns frankly, and the poet agrees with whatever they have to say.
The epic begins with the introductory canto "With the World Outside", where the poet rises out of uncertainty and tries to trace his own identity. Like a postmodern human, he rejects the notion of the centre. He is always moving, always shifting. And out of his move, his never-ending fluidity, he both decanters and re-centers the logos—the ultimate truth.
Bibek Adhikari
Poet and critic
The Kathmandu Post, 29 February, 2020