Many historical works are restricted to a single language and unknown to the rest of the world due to the language barrier. English has emerged, thanks to its wide usage, as a means to bridge the gap.
The World of Translation in Indian Scene Literature
The world of translation in Indian scene literature, which boasts multilingualism, found itself in the spotlight when writer Geetanjali Shree and translator Daisy Rockwell won the International Booker Prize 2022 for “Tomb of Sand.”
The Importance of Translation in Literature
But what remains unknown is how a group of translators has quietly worked to translate historical archives to reveal the lost narratives of past eras.
Providing Multilingual Access to History
To understand history, the reader needs access to different perspectives. The various languages in India ensure access to a diversity of opinions and aid in understanding intellectual traditions in non-English languages.
The Role of the New India Foundation in Translation
The New India Foundation (NIF) translates historical texts from various Indian languages into English. The foundation provides grants for translating non-fiction texts in different Indian languages into English. These grants cover various topics about India post-independence with the aim of expanding the cultural scope of works that have remained restricted to a single language.
Maintaining the Spirit
Translating an original text written by someone in a specific time period presents serious challenges, such as adapting to the author’s lens, preserving its spirit, and not allowing the translator’s vision to overshadow the author’s authenticity.
Efforts of the New India Foundation
What distinguishes the New India Foundation is its efforts to bring forth the lost archives of the independence movement post-1850 and the partition to provide a different lens for the Indian diaspora to understand its past struggles.
Making Progress in Indian History
In explaining the New India Foundation’s critical contribution to the field of translation, Manish Sabharwal, the foundation’s executive director, said: “The Bengali translation grant awarded in the first round focused on the diaries of Nirmal Kumar Bose from 1946 and 1947, during which he witnessed the key events of independence in Bengal and the partition there. This is just one example – it is true that the publishing landscape in India changed significantly from 1850, especially with the evolution of printing culture in Indian languages. Excavating these narratives will help us understand the progress of Indian history from a different lens, and that is the goal pursued by the translation grants at the New India Foundation.”
By: Preesha
Preesha is a digital journalist at WION primarily covering international politics. She loves diving into articles and exploring the cultures and histories of different places. She believes in purposeful journalism and books are her haven.
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