Probably, no other country in the world enjoys a language demography more diverse (and intense in many respects) than India. Our country also has a unique record of creating large feuds and social movements on the meagre basis of language. While certain communities have been banished from parts of the country based on their linguistic differences, there are others facing immense hardships for the same.
Standing in such a scenario, it will be a loss of my energy to speak regarding linguistic aspects as we all, from our resources know a little or more of the subject, so I will speak about something else. The literature of the different languages of India, yes, that’s my topic for this piece.
Frequently, we have seen a language getting trapped within the boundaries of a certain area, and ultimately dying out in the same. A large chunk of the dialects of Northeast and East India have altogether vanished off the surface of the earth except a few heretical villages. Such languages, at times not only contain a rich and classical folklore but also have a heroic history of the communities associated with them. Many ethnic communities have preserved their languages over the long span of time since their inception to their inclusion in the country of India. But, even such communities, with a distinct language and dialect, as may be the case, have been forced to see off their traditional language, and along with it, their rich history, just because “the whole world speaks in some other language, dude!”
Now, in such a point of a language’s life, comes the need of translations. Although, there is very little or almost no incentive from the government to do the same, it is time for the conscious population to rise up. There are a few publishing firms which look forward to accepting translated works, and as a result, the art of translating has been slowly dying out. The Bengalis are holding onto it for a long time, but there too, the business is being shown the door gradually. Many factors can be cited for the decline, the increasing English speaking population and the booming of the world literature, these are developments in a society, undoubtedly. But living in a country, where we have over thousands of dialects and languages, but one factor remains unperturbed from its place, “Are we being honest to our mother tongues?”
The society, as a whole, needs to understand that the emancipation of the country from linguistic shackles will only come when each and every citizen of the country has the means and resources to access the literature of others. They, then, will come to know, what surprises India holds within its bosom. The need for translations of languages such as Naga, Manipuri, Bhojpuri, Assamese, Bengali, etc needs to be addressed at an urgent level. While the vice versa is sufficiently done in case of literary works, it has to be pushed forward to academic boundaries too, where a lot of students face difficulties shifting from vernacular to English mediums.
The country will be prouder , when a French writer translates a Manipuri book into his own language, or a Spanish writer contacts the authorities for translating rights of a Bhojpuri book, because India is not only about any particular language, it’s about the assimilation of all the languages that contribute in shaping its unique tune. The tune of culture, diversity and unity. We need free websites to be formed for translated works, volunteers for translating dialects into English and other languages. Already a few publications have cropped up like Blaft, etc which focuses mainly on translations, but it is not sufficient, with the government maintaining a pin drop silence on the issue, it is the common masses, who should take up the issue.
Death of a language is as serene and cruel as the death of a person and it can only survive the hard course of reality and globalisation if it’s made available for the world to understand and interpret its richness. While, maintaining a strict stand to allow no other language in a state, will serve no purpose other than feuds and clashes, the battle for linguistic states (already we have many) will soon become without a cause. This is also the only method in which the literature of a particular language can be shown the shining rays of development, when the intellectuals all over the world will be looking over it as if it were their own. Trapping a language within a cage of borders, as many communities of the country do, saying that it is only to protect their culture, can never do that. Their hypocrisy s exposed with statements of the youth saying that they do not know the language they were born with.
India’s languages need to be represented on the global scenario, and with proper and good intentions, and for that, a regular and devoted body for translation, funded by the government and pushed forward by the progressive masses, is the way to go.
