The country needs more translators for regional poetry to cross language barriers and improve our understanding of each other’s culture, said legendary poet-lyricist Gulzar.
On the second day of the Bengaluru Poetry Festival 2017, poet and former diplomat Pavan Varma discussed Gulzar’s translation of the former’s book ‘Yudhishtar and Draupadi’ from English to Hindi.
“I translated the sonnet to Hindi as I read it in order to understand it better. Later, when I was in Delhi, I asked Pavan Varma to come and meet me for 10 minutes. I was worried about how he would receive it,” Gulzar said about how he came to translate the book. Pavan Varma was taken aback when he heard his own poem read to him in Hindi but he liked the translation and the book was eventually republished in a bilingual edition.
Speaking of the challenges of translation, Pavan Varma said, “Translation is not the same as transliteration. One has to convey not just the meaning, but also the feel of the poem. The translator has to be proficient in both languages and should also understand both cultures.”
Gulzar, who has translated to Hindi over 300 poems from 32 languages, explained the process he follows. “If I am translating a Malayalam poem, I sit and work with an expert in the language. I could ask them to just send a written translation to me but instead I ask them to read it out. I need to understand the rhythm of the language so I can make the right choice of words and sounds,” he said.
The North-East region of the country has the most dynamic poetry scene but without good translators, their works will remain inaccessible to a large populace, the two poets said.
They stressed the importance of understanding one’s mother tongue. “If you do not know your mother tongue, you will be a linguistic orphan. You can attain mastery over English but you will never be able to understand it like a native-speaker of the language,” Pavan Varma said.
However, he added that one must retain their mother tongue with pride, not chauvinism.
Gulzar also urged north Indians to make an effort to learn languages from South India.