Seven volumes of the translation are likely to be released in January

The Persian and Arabic literature dating back to the times of the Adil Shahi dynasty, that ruled Bijapur, will soon be available in Kannada, with the ambitious translation project nearing completion. The seven volumes are likely to be released in January.

Krishna Kolhar Kulkarni, director, Adil Shahi Literature Translation Project, says this was the first effort of its kind and a major portion of the work had been completed. He hoped that some misconceptions about this phase of history (from 15th to 17th century) would be dispelled once the project was completed.

In English

Meanwhile, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has expressed willingness to fund the translation works of these books into English. “The ASI officials said this when I was in Delhi to collect some books for translation,” said Mr. Kulkarni, adding that it will be taken up after the Kannada project.

He said in the first phase, 10 rare books of the Adil Shahi era written in Persian, have been taken up for translation into Kannada, of which the translation of six books is underway. Stating that most of the books taken up for translation were written in the 17th century, he said the project will translate some of the rarest books, some not even heard of.

Mr. Kulkarni said books include ‘Tareekh-e-Farishta’ by Mohammad Farishta and ‘Ibrahim Nama’ by Abdulla Dehelvi.

“Among them, ‘Mohammad Nama’ by Kazi Nurallah is believed to have only two copies in the world, that too are reproduced versions and not original. We have succeeded in getting a copy for translation,” he said.

Mr. Kulkarni said these books have been collected from the Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad, the archives of Andhra Pradesh and the ASI headquarter, New Delhi.

“We are making all arrangements to get some books from London Museum for translation,” he said.

While collecting some known books, he said he came across some unknown books of the era written by several foreign authors.

Informing that the committee has meticulously selected a dozen translators, Mr. Kulkarni said that some 3,500 translated pages in seven volumes will be released in January.

He added that the committee has also collected hundreds of manuscripts, Farmans (orders), Sanads (deeds) and poetries written in Persian, which will also be translated.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National / by Firoz Rozindar / Biijapur – September 16th, 2013