It was a "Namkeen" evening in New Delhi, as Sharmila Tagore turned up to launch an exquisite collection of Rabindranath Tagore’s poetry translated by Gulzar The set of two books, “Nindiya Chor” (The Crescent Moon) and “Baghban” (The Gardener) include 60-odd poems by Tagore. These poems, unlike the ones in "Geetanjali", are written by a young and romantic Tagore and also have poems on mother-child relationship. The collection brings together two of the greatest poets of our land, Tagore and Gulzar.
This two-book set is his tribute to the poet laureate of India. Baaghbaan comprises his translations of Tagore’s poems gleaned from collections such as Chitra, Kshanika and Sonar Tari while Nindiya Chor is based mostly on Shishu, Tagore’s book of poems on the world of the child. Alongside Gulzar’s inimitable translations come the poems in the Bengali original and English translation.
"We need to understand that Tagore wasn’t born with his beard. What he has written as a young, romantic and handsome man hasn’t been acknowledged as much as it deserves to be. I really want the children to read and enjoy Tagore,” said Gulzar.
Gulzar discovered Tagore at the age of ten through an Urdu translation of “The Gardener” and instantly fell in love with his poetry. The one who gave him this book did not imagine how it would affect young Gulzar’s mind.
“ Jis insaan ne mujhe ye kitaab di use ye nahi pata tha ki vo meri zindagi ko ek naya mod de raha hai. Us din ke baad se kitaabonki meri talaash badal gayi.”
Gulzar’s fascination with Bangla grew in the company of Bengali friends at school and also later in life he married a Bengali.
“Writing love letters to my beloved in Bengali made me more fluent with the language and I think that’s the perfect way to learn a language. Fall in love with a girl who speaks the language you want to learn,” Gulzar chuckles.
Since his first encounter with Tagore, Gulzar has read numerous works and considers Tagore as one of his greatest inspirations. Gulzar mentions in astonishment how Tagore, despite losing his own mother at a very young age, writes so beautifully about the relationship between a mother and a child.. When asked about choosing to translate these particular poems by Tagore, Gulzar replies in a tone of admiration, “These poems tell us about Tagore’s unique observation of body language as well as understanding and projecting of feminine feelings.”
Talking about the process of translation, Gulzar added, “I am not happy with the available English translations of Tagore’s poetry. While translating any piece of writing, one should make sure that the images associated to the poems aren’t lost. Language carries a certain culture along with it and it is necessary to keep that feature intact in the translated poem as well. That is what I have tried to do for the past five years. I have translated his poems and managed to keep the images intact. The only thing that can’t be translated is the alliteration in Tagore’s poems in Bengali. Bus jee chahta tha ki baata jaaye ye sab mein. (My heart said that it should be shared.”
The discussion was followed by a lovely reading session, with Sharmila reading the poems in Bengali and Gulzar reciting them in Hindi. On being asked if he would translate more of Tagore’s poems, Gulzar replied, “Beta ye ek aadmi aur ek zindagi ka kaam nahin par haan ye shuruat zaroor hai. (This work can’t be completed by one person, in one life time. It is just the beginning)”
Sharmila, whose parents were distantly related to the Nobel laureate, said nobody could have done it better than Gulzar. "The visuals, the images and the essence of Tagore’s poems have been woven so well, it’s commendable. This really is the amalgamation of the two most important Indian poets. I’m humbled to be present here and recite Tagore for you."
