KOZHIKODE: With five years still left for the end of his tenure, Kavasserry Sheshayyar Venkitachalam’s decision to take voluntary retirement from the State Bank of India was down to a single reason — the call of letters. And at 56, he plunged headlong into the world of literature. Two decades on, he has been prolific as a translator. So far, he has translated 31 works to Malayalam -- 26 from Tamil and the rest from English.
“Translation is a silent cultural activity,” says Venkitachalam.
“The translator goes through the varied experiences of another cultural sphere and recreates them to the current world providing justice to the original text.”The Karapparamba resident says translating a local dialect without losing the meaning in the intended cultural milieu is the biggest challenge. Citing an example, he points out: “When we say ‘aval anke poyirunthalaam’ in Tamil, it needs to be translated as ‘aval avide poyirunnuvathre’ in Malayalam. Without the ‘athre’, we miss the tone.”
If anything, Venkitachalam’s has been a life devoted to bridging the gap between Tamil and Malayalam literature. His Malayalam translations include ‘Kamba Ramayanam’ of Kambar, ‘Aaraanu Njaan’ of Ramana Maharshi, ‘Agraharathile Poocha’ of Jayakanthan, ‘Theranjedutha Kathakal’ of Perumal Murugan and ‘Upa Pandavam’ by S Ramakrishnan, among others. In due recognition of his contributions, Venkitachalam was conferred with the Kendra Sahitya Akademi award and the Nalli Thisai Ettum award, both in 2017. While four of his translations are set to hit the market soon, he is working on two other books. Among them is Justice Chandru’s book.
Though born in Kozhikode, Venkitachalam’s mother tongue is Tamil, which helps him carry the cultural essence of the original text into Malayalam without losing its tone. He says the Madurai dialect had posed him the biggest headache. Another must for a translator is continuous communication with the author to make sure that nothing is lost in translation, he says.“After I complete a work, I would read it in front of the author in the presence of a person adept in Malayalam.”
Besides literature, Venkitachalam, a bachelor, enjoys travelling, music and the company of friends. His family members call him ‘Sethu’, a name that the legendary M T Vasudevan Nair too uses to address him, after the protagonist in MT’s acclaimed novel ‘Kaalam’. He avers he is more comfortable with reading a book by holding it in his hands than on an e-reader, and writing on paper than using any digital device. He has another dream too.“I have written close to 25 short stories in Malayalam, which have not been published. I wish the collection reaches the hands of readers soon.”