CANCELLED: Reading the Americanized Joothan: The Translator’s Cringe

My translation of Hindi Dalit writer, Omprakash Valmiki’s autobiography, Joothan, was published by Samya in 2003. Columbia University Press bought the American rights for the book and appointed an editor to edit my translation. My talk will look at some of the changes the American editor made to my translation. As I discovered, by comparing the Indian and American version, the changes are multiple, and, from my perspective, diminish the beauty and the power of this major Dalit text. Comparing the two versions also brings out the sad fact that certain cultural contexts require an open mind that does not rush to judgment when challenged to move out of its ‘comfort zone.’