This book explores the 'folk' performance genre of _Kobigaan_, a dialogic song-theatre form in which performers verse-duel in contemporary West Bengal and Bangladesh. It is a verse-duelling genre practiced across the India-Bangladesh border. It is one of the many dialogic genres in South Asia highlighting the verbal virtuosity, bricolage, and storytelling abilities of performers (_kobiyaal_s). While rural performances of this genre (most often tied with religious rituals and village fairs) can last through overnight sessions, _Kobigaan_'s other formats are often truncated and adapted according to diverse venues, audience tastes, and artistic choices. Caste, class, gender, and identity politics intertwine with the larger cultural politics of 'folk' in the cross-border contemporary practices of _Kobigaan_. Consequently, several performing groups become 'claimants' of authentic _Kobigaan_ as it travels from rural settings to urban festivals, and from Bengali cinema to television and the new media. Over time, the element of debate (_kobir loraai_) has become a synecdoche for _Kobigaan_. It has also come to signify people's songs, national culture, folk heritage, and even sound chronotopes (in cinema). Conflictingly, the perception of _Kobigaan_ in Bengali cultural memory also relies on its status as 'decadent', 'extinct', or 'obsolete'.

The book shows how the genre, thought to be a nearly extinct form, is still prevalent in the India-Bangladesh region. It shows how, like many other 'folk' practices in South and South-East Asia, the content and format of this genre have undergone vital changes, thus raising questions of authenticity, patronage, and cultural politics. _The Poet's Song_ captures live performances of _Kobigaan _through ethnographies spread across borders--from village rituals to urban festivals, and from Bengali cinema to television and new media. While understanding _Kobigaan _from the practitioners' points of view, this book also explores the crucial issues of gender, marginalisation, and representation that are true of any performance genre.