Decoding what a text doesn’t say explicitly can be a political act and a cultural intervention.
Last week, I interviewed the scholar, Ashoka University professor, writer, and translator, Rita Kothari, for Desi Books. It was a rich, enlightening discussion and not just because we translate from the same language (Gujarati.) I found her points about how we struggle to decode certain sociocultural and political issues through translation and how we’re unable to capture what the silences mean to be most interesting. Have a listen.
And, if you’re translating from or into any South Asian language, you might be interested in this online, free event. It’s happening this weekend and part of a new initiative and organization founded by Rita Kothari and Arunava Sinha, who’s also a prolific, award-winning translator at Ashoka University.
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Oh, here are a few interesting links from this week:
Catapult’s latest newsletter focusing on language and translation
Pardeep Toor’s Longreads reading list on losing your native tongue
Asymptote Journal is looking for works written in response to the current Ukraine war
Looking for help? Check out my writing workshops and book consultation services.
So, over to you. What do you think about Rita Kothari’s point about how we decode (or try to) certain sociocultural and political issues when we translate from one language to another? Have you, as a translator, struggled with this? Have you, as a reader, come across this in a translation where you thought the translator did or didn’t quite accomplish it? I’d love to know more. You can either reply to this note or share at my social media accounts below and I’ll happily respond and share it on.
Looking for book recommendations? Check out my ongoing book lists.
