As part of its plan to expand its horizon and collaboration with other State government departments, the Tamil Nadu Textbook and Educational Services Corporation (TTESC) has launched a project to translate 12 Tamil Dalit literary works into English.
Some of the books have already been published and will be available at the Corporation’s stall at the Chennai Book Fair in January. The ₹25-lakh project was announced by Adi Dravidar Welfare Minister N. Kayalvizhi Selvaraj in the Assembly during the demand for grants for the department.
The new works are Engg Kathe (My Story) by Sahitya Akademi winner Imayam; Iyothee Thass selections; New writers-upcoming, An anthology of writings/speeches of Dalit leaders of the 19th and early 20th Century (Pundit Iyothee Thass, Rettaimalai Srinivasan, M.C. Raja, Swami Sagajananda, Gurusamy, Veeraiyan, Meenambal, N. Shivaraj, Masilamani and Periaysami Pulavan); a collection of writings by Stalin Rajangam translated into English; and an anthology of autobiographical excerpts.
The Corporation is also reprinting Koogai, a novel by Sahitya Akademi winner Cho Dharman (OUP); Towards a Non-Brahmin Millennium: From Iyothee Thass to Periyar by V. Geetha and S.V. Rajadurai (Sage); Karukku by Bama (Sage); The Scar by K.A. Guansekaran (OBS); and A Grip of Change by Sivakami.
“We are widening our role after what we called the beginning of the renaissance in the Corporation in 2017. ...We have already printed books for the Higher Education Department, medical books, books for the Social Welfare and the Backward Classes Departments,” said R. Gajalakshmi, MD of the Corporation. She said the books were being printed in collaboration with leading publishers to ensure quality and professionalism.
“These translations seek to bridge the urban-rural divide and offer the urbanites a clear idea of life in rural areas,” she added.
The Scar, the English version of the Vadu by K.A. Gunasekaran, is considered the first modern Dalit autobiography in Tamil. “As the narrative unfolds, the reader is shown how the low caste negotiates differently with the three religious communities (Hindus, Muslims and Christians),” says the book. Former IAS officer P. Sivakami has translated her novel Pazhayana Kazhithalum, the first Tamil novel by a Dalit woman, and says that she read the book as a third person and found that it was a process of understanding the dynamics of caste and the woman who was inextricably involved in the process.
G. Lakshmi Priya, Secretary of the Adi Dravidar Welfare Department, explains that “the aim of the department is to elevate the voices of literary contributions of accomplished writers from the Adi Dravidar and tribal communities and provide a global platform for these writers”.
The project, she says “serves as a pathway to their voices and enables readers to enter a diverse and profound tapestry of storytelling.” “It will encourage and motivate aspiring authors to share their own stories and perspectives, thereby fostering the expansion of a distinct literary horizon.”
