The publication in English of Kannada writer Vivek Shanbhag’s Ghachar Ghochar (2015) transformed the Indian literary scene. The book’s success decisively shifted the balance of power, whether in terms of sales or prestige, away from English-language writers and towards fiction in translation.
Ghachar Ghochar’s influence owed nothing to prizes, Western acclaim (although much of that was to follow), or publishing hype. It was an entirely home-grown, bottom-up phenomenon. It spread in the old way, reader to reader, propelled only by its intrinsic quality and the excellence of Srinath Perur’s translation.
