Umra Rawaha – Winner of the 21st Century Emily Dickinson Award
Unrequited, Unfiltered, Unforgettable – Umra’s Whispers of the Heart
Allahabad, [India]: Meet Umra Rawaha, a prodigious young author, passionate humanities student, and already a five-time published writer by the time most are just beginning their journey. With Whispers of the Heart, her most emotionally resonant work to date, Umra captures the ache, the beauty, and the profound healing that come from loving in silence.
Awarded the 21st Century Emily Dickinson Award, Whispers of the Heart is a poetry collection rooted in themes of unrequited love, heartbreak, romantic yearning, and emotional healing. Each of the 21 poems in this collection pulses with raw vulnerability—drawing from the still, sacred spaces between what we feel and what we dare not say.
“Whispers of the Heart was born from that space of quiet ache,” Umra shares. “It’s my way of offering a soft, comforting hug to those hearts—to make them feel seen, validated, and most of all, alive.”
This beautifully woven collection speaks directly to those who’ve loved in silence, suffered in quiet, and searched for solace in their own unspoken emotions. For Umra, writing has always been a form of healing, a superpower that allowed her to hold someone in words when she could not hold them in reality. It’s the bittersweet essence of being a writer—deeply felt, rarely returned. As she poignantly observes: “Everyone reads the writer’s heart except the muse it beats for.”
Her love for literature is reflected not only in her poetic expression but also in her inspirations—Satyajit Ray, Ruskin Bond, Agatha Christie, and Sudha Murthy, along with the timeless brilliance of Shakespeare. With each verse, she weaves classical influence into modern emotional depth, creating a lyrical voice that is both timeless and tender.
Umra extends her deepest gratitude to the people who’ve stood beside her throughout this journey: her parents, Mr. Rawaha Bin Islam and Mrs. Shaheen Rawaha, for their unconditional love and belief; her siblings, Naila and Abdullah, for being her unwavering support; and the community at St. Mary’s Convent, where her journey took shape. She is especially thankful to her teacher, Mr. Shishank Johnson, for his inspiration and mentorship. She also expresses heartfelt appreciation to her cherished friends—Kavya, Adwitiya, Jiya, Anmol, Maryam, and Divisha—for their love, joy, encouragement, and for being the pillars of her strength.
Each of these connections finds its way into her writing, breathing life into poems that are at once deeply personal and universally resonant.
With Whispers of the Heart, Umra Rawaha invites her readers into a sanctuary—a quiet corner of the soul where broken hearts can rest, reflect, and slowly begin to heal. Her words serve not only as poetry but as presence—standing with readers in their loneliness, celebrating them in their tenderness, and reminding them that even unreturned love is never wasted.
📖 Book Title: Whispers of the Heart
🏆 Award: 21st Century Emily Dickinson Award
📍 From: Allahabad, India
📷 Instagram: @she_writes07_
