Dr Lakshmi Persaud shared her work with Guyanese literary enthusiasts

Feb 05, 2024 Letters

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Dear Editor,

Kaieteur News – It is with a heavy heart I read of the passing in England of celebrated writer Lakshmi Persaud (nee Seetaram) who taught for a period of time at Queens College when she lived in Guyana with her Berbician husband, Prof Bishnodat Persaud who pre-deceased (2016 at age 82) her. She also taught in Trinidad and Jamaica and spent time in Barbados where her son is a prominent economic advisor.  She was admired for her writing skills and her articulation of views and positions on issues. Lakshmi had a large following of Guyanese and Caribbean literary enthusiasts in UK, Canada, USA, Guyana, and the Caribbean.

Those she taught at Queens said she was an outstanding teacher. She and her husband loved interacting with Guyanese and other West Indians wherever they traveled.

In New York, the diaspora honors the memory of Dr. Lakshmi Persaud and her important contribution to the field of literature and specifically of Caribbean women’s writing.

Whenever she (and or her husband) visited USA, they were hosted by Guyanese writers for lectures. It was an honor for me to meet her and Bishnodat in London, New York, and Trinidad on multiple occasions and their sharing personal experiences. What a lovely couple! They were very good to Guyanese and other groups at home and in the diaspora sharing their books and experiences and hosting several of us at different locations.

Lakshmi was born in Trinidad and studied in Trinidad and at Queens University, Belfast where she earned her doctorate. There she met Canje born Bishnodat (called Vishnu) who was doing a doctorate in Economics, and they later got married.

Bishnodat was an eminent economist who headed the Economics Department of the Commonwealth Secretariat in London. He led the group that prepared the ERP of 1988 in Guyana and several other missions on economic reforms in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. He was a private shy person who did not like to share economic views publicly unlike wife Lakshmi. They held me in confidence and related several private incidents, anecdotes, and engagements they had with Guyanese politicians including Sir Shridath Ramphal, Desmond Hoyte, Clive Thomas, Cheddi Jagan, Bharrat Jagdeo, Hamilton Green, JE Green (when he was lecturing at MONA). Dr Bishnodat worked closely with Ramphal to reform several state-centric Commonwealth economies. He was at one time the leader of a research group that comprised Manmohan Singh, who went on to become Finance Minister and Prime Minister of India; he advised the Indian government to pursue market reforms. He also worked with the eminent economist Prof Clive Thomas.

Bishnodat and Lakshmi hosted several visiting Guyanese at their home in Jamaica. He also hosted me at a private posh exclusive club in London where we reviewed economic policy of Guyanese rulers. Bishnodat had a special bonding with me and trusted me with revelations of life of prominent Caribbean individuals including Guyanese politicians. We also made many conversations on the phone, and he clarified several economic concepts that I thought I understood. He spoke of the errors of Jagan, Burnham, Janet, and Hoyte in economic policies. He praised some of Jagdeo’s policies and was critical of others. Given his experience and prominence internationally, Bishnodat felt Jagdeo such have accepted a trans-global leadership position like head of an international organization (on Climate, or on economic reform) even of CARICOM (that would have required an exemption since a host country national can’t head the organization).

Dr Lakshmi, who also did a postgraduate Diploma in Education at University of Reading, England, made immense contributions in the field of Indian Caribbean literature.  Her novels were masterpieces depicting real life. She wrote with great feeling and warmth and her writings have helped to focus literature on Indo-Caribbean people. She elevated the reach of Indian Caribbean literature to a wider circle in the UK, North America, and the Caribbean where she had large number of admirers. Her novels focused on the Indo-Caribbean experience and she revealed to me her first-hand experience of the marginalization of Indians in Guyana, Trinidad, Jamaica, and UK.

She was a forward thinker and her novels focused on different subjects including on most difficult period of living in Guyana during the 1970s and 1980s and about exploitation of women. She showed women a new light in being a strong, independent individual. Her intellect and knowledge and experience about writing and literature and her teaching skills were a guiding spirit for many youngsters to write in English literature. Her usage of simple language as well as of usage of mellifluous words will continue to remind us of the power of expression.

The vivid imagery of her writings about life in the societies she lived in will always remain a rich encapsulation of the Indo-Caribbean experience. She was deservingly recognized for her prize-winning novels and contribution to literature and education by universities in England and UWI with Honorary doctorate.  She was also a recipient several other honors including by the Government of T&T.

In NY, those who met Lakshmi and Bishnodat have only words of praise, of their kindness and generosity and of her writing skills and his brilliance as an economist. They both have left behind a cherished memory and great works for us to read and enjoy. (On a separate note, Bishnodat was a cricket enthusiast and an outstanding player captaining his university’s West Indian team while he was a student).

Yours truly,

Dr Vishnu Bisram

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• Berbician husband, Bishnodat in London, Cheddi Jagan, Clive Thomas, Desmond Hoyte, New York, Prof Bishnodat, Shridath Ramphal

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