VIJAYAWADA: Understanding the feelings, thoughts and underlying meaning of the author is of paramount importance while translating literary works from one language into another, former Chief Justice of India Justice NV Ramana said.
Translation is not merely the process of replacing words from one language with another, but an art of conveying the poet’s emotions, thoughts and deeper expressions to readers, he observed.
Ramana was speaking after releasing the Telugu translation of Rabindranath Tagore’s internationally acclaimed literary work ‘Gitanjali’, translated by P Krishnaiah, former IAS officer and Chairman of the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board, at a programme organised by Emesco Publishers at CVRGM High School premises in Governorpet on Saturday evening.
Justice Ramana said bringing such a distinguished work of world literature into another language was no ordinary task. Every word in poetry carries a distinct emotion, and a translation that fails to capture these nuances cannot do justice to the original work. A translator must first understand the poet’s thought process and internalise the emotions expressed in the original composition, he said.
Appreciating Krishnaiah’s efforts, Justice Ramana said he had succeeded in capturing the essence of Tagore’s poetry in Telugu translation. Krishnaiah has made an effort to bring the richness of Tagore’s ‘Gitanjali’ closer to Telugu readers while retaining literary values and poetic beauty of the original work via simple and reader-friendly language.