Oxford Bookstore, Connaught Place celebrated annual daylong symposium…

From Walls to Bridges: Indian Literatures and Translation

Oxford Bookstore, Connaught Place in New Delhi brought alive yet another edition of the stimulating language symposium with the theme ‘From Walls to Bridges: Indian Literatures and Translation.’ The symposium was curated with an aim to focus on the vast and incredible non-English literature that India has to offer and view translations in the Indian context.

A gathering of prominent writers, scholars and translators discussed the various nuances of literary translation. What makes literature translation such a speciality area? How does translation help shape cultural and social thinking? In what way does translation bridge the cultural gap between languages? As a nation and a civilization, we live, breathe, think, read and dream in between languages, an astonishing array of mother tongues and literary traditions. Literary translators are a special breed, acting as a bridge between cultures. What are the unique challenges and rewards of their craft?

The symposium was commenced with a keynote address by the K Sachidanandan on Translations in the Indian Context, followed by sessions with the esteemed panelists on regional languages, translations and on their contribution to this movement.

The exceptional line up of panelists included Aditi Maheshwari, Achia Anzi, Anamika, Anjum Katyal, Arunava Sinha, Aparajit Chattopadhyay, Alka Tyagi, Alok Bhalla, Ashok Vajpeyi, Gauhar Raza, Ira Trivedi, John Vater, Minakshi Thakur, Namita Gokhale Sivapriya, Pushpesh Pant, Poonam Saxena , Rakhshanda Jalil, Subhro Bandopadhyay, Uday Prakash and Yasser Usman. The day concluded with Main Tumhe Phir Miloongi- A play on Love letters of Amrita Pritam and Imroz enacted by Salim Arif and Lubna Salim.

Oxford Bookstore in association with Apeejay Arts also unveiled Israeli artist, Achia Anzi’s installation representing the Rhizome or mass of roots as metaphor of languages and how they spread and grow. Oxford Bookstore, Connaught Place has always been passionate about promoting the diverse literatures of India and also boasts of a dedicated translations section. On this occasion of the annual symposium, the bookstore announced the addition of a section on Dalit Literature.