International Translation Day: What the power of being understood means

This year’s International Translation Day is themed Linguistic Diversity and Language Rights, with the subtitle ‘The Power to be Understood’. The act of translating a text is more than a verbatim, word-for-word translation; it holds the power to show a new world to the reader. A world that would otherwise be denied to the curious mind. How else would a Malayali sitting in a small town in Kerala, comfortable reading Malayalam, have accessed Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist and found hope, comfort and purpose? Translated by Rema Menon, and published by DC Books, it is said to be one of the best-selling translations. Meanwhile, Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai’s Malayalam classic Chemmeen is said to have been translated into more than 20 languages worldwide.Language as a bridge Prasanna Varma | Photo Credit: THULASI KAKKAT Language, I feel, is humanity's best tool and worst weapon. It can transcend borders, build communities, and widen horizons. Translation is not a mere process of conversion. It doesn’t merely convert one set of syllables into another. Translation happens at every step of effective communication. Do you translate your thoughts into words effectively? Do you proactively translate your words into actions? Good translation has a good listener. Do you listen and go beyond the spoken word to understand what is left unspoken? Do you see only the big print, or can you see what is in the margins? In a world where umpteen languages and umpteen dialects exist some loud, some unheard, some on the verge of extinction we need people who use their hearts to translate, not just their brains. To make sure language is not used as a weapon to hack the world into tiny fractions. To make sure that it is used as a bridge.To tell you the truth, there is always this fear of misinterpreting a text. Not in the meaning. But the essence of it. I don’t make any claims of having this power to understand a text. I am just a person who is willing to try. Willing to listen to what the author has to say. Willing to extend that listening to someone else who is on the other bank of the language. The biggest achievement is when the translator disappears. And let the author and reader stand face to face. I am not sure if I have been able to do that.Among the works Prasanna Varma has translated into Malayalam include Manu Pillai’s The Ivory Throne, Gods, Guns and Missionaries, Yuval Noah Harari’s Home Deus, Shehan Karunatilaka’s Seven Moons of Maali Almeida. Her most recent work is The Complete Memoirs, of Pablo Neruda.The importance of understanding Catherine Thankamma | Photo Credit: THULASI KAKKAT Translation is intrinsically the process of enabling readers to discover, access and understand texts written in unfamiliar languages, and thereby get to know about cultures and experiences other than their own. Translation at its best sensitises the reader to alternate realities and experiences and generates empathy. The aim of the translator is to manoeuvre the target language, wrenching and twisting its structural parameters to create a translation that is faithful to the source text, retains its flavour and vitality without compromising on readability. Having said this, a translator cannot succeed if the issue s/he confronts is ‘refusal to understand’; an issue that is alarmingly on the rise. For instance, take the powerful Palestinian novel Minor Detail (2017) by Adania Shibil; structurally brilliant and devastating in its impact, and translated into English by Elisabeth Jaquette. The award scheduled to be presented at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2023 was cancelled due to political pressure. Closer home, we have Narayan’s Kocharethi, which, despite winning multiple awards, being translated into five Indian languages and French, and being part of the Culture Studies syllabus of the University of Calgary, remains unmentioned and unacknowledged by the elite, privileged source-language community.Catherine Thankamma has translated Malayalam novels such as Narayan’s Kocharethi, Ajai P Mangattu’s Susannayude Granthapura, Aliya by Sethu, and Pulayathara by Paul Chirakkode into English. Ayyankali: The Life of a Crusader for Social Reform, MR Renukumar’s biography of the reformer is a recent work. Her short story collection is A Kind of Meat and Other Stories.A science and an art Santhosh Alex | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement Translation is both a science and an art. Over three decades of practice, I am now able to view it as an art. When I read a work with the intention of translating it into another language, the first thing I look at is how adaptable the work is to the target readers. When translating from one Indian language into another, the ethos and passions are similar, and this includes the grammar and syntax. But translating into English involves a complete cultural shift, where one has to take liberties.Certain Indian words that have no equivalents in Englis hwould have to be explained in footnotes; even then the translator would have to take liberties while transporting an entire world and experiences into another languistic milieu.The process of translation is neither easy nor seamless .Every work has its own heft. If the act of writing is creation, translation is an act of re-creating in a new turf. It involves reading, re-reading, living the scenes and delving deep into it…. For someone who is deeply passionate about languages, the process can be both challenging and rewarding.Santhosh Alex is a poet, writer and multilingual translator .He has introduced more than 50 writers from five different languages to English, Hindi and Malayalam. He has published a book in Hindi on KG George’s films, KG George ki Filmein. Translators have a bigger role to play Sunil Naliyath | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement In today’s world, linguistic and cultural plurality is being increasingly circumscribed in a way that’s quite alarming. As such, ‘The power of being understood’, the chosen subtitle for this year’s World Translation Day aptly brings a country like India into spotlight. And, it’s here that both translators and translations can infuse a much needed fresh breath of air, especially between the regional and less privileged languages. Fortunately, with the presence of a dedicated band of translators, translations are happening in a fast paced manner. And, I remain hopeful.At a time when there are deliberate moves to disintegrate the nation both linguistically and culturally, if not more aggressively in other social domains as well, I believe, translators have a bigger role to play. Translations exude the relevance of cultural integration and reiterate a feeling that despite all the linguistic differences, we are one. It’s equally important to note that with the arrival of artificial intelligence, translators will have to cling to their own set of values by remaining organic. It was a chance encounter that prompted me to take up translation seriously. And, honestly, I am not a theory-driven translator nor do I hold onto any strategies. I take up projects that appeal to me as a reader first and then as a translator.Among author and translator Sunil Naliyath’s translations are Mahasweta Devi’s Operation Bhashai Tudu into Malayalam.