அருந்தமிழும் அன்றாட வழக்கும் – 178
ஷேக்ஸ்பியர் நாடகங்களின் மொழியாக்கப் பேரெழுச்சி
முனைவர் ஔவை அருள்
தில்லிப் பல்கலைக்கழகத்தில் யான் 28 ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்பு வழங்கிய
முனைவர் பட்ட ஆய்வின் இருபத்தெட்டாம் பகுதி வருமாறு:
In Simhalanathan, the Tamil version of Cymbeline, Pammal Sambanda Mudaliar follows his usual practice of localizing the names of characters.
He omitted scenes which he felt were not by Shakespeare and also those passages which may sound objectionable and obscene to the Tamil audience.
Though the play is named after Simhalanathan, the main focus of interest is Hemangi (Imogen), a model of chastity and purity.
Pammal Sambanda Mudaliar had the conviction that these values should be emphasized by projecting these values as embodied in Hemangi and succeeded in getting the play to be highly appreciated.
His retention of the title based upon the original shows his practice of not deviating from his source.
It should be pointed out in this context that Salasalochana Chettiar named his version of ‘Cymbeline’ as ‘Sarasangi’ in order to focus attention on the heroine and her moral qualities.
The story of the two princes, Arvaragan and Giridharan, within the play provides a parallel to the characters of Lava and Kusa in the Valmiki Ramayana.
The following Tamil passage illustrates Pammal Sambanda Mudaliar’s expert handling of Shakesperean expressions in his play Simhalanathan (Act I scenes)
ஹே – போதூர இதுவரையில் உன்
வார்த்தைகளைக் கேட்டஎன் செவிகளை நான்தூர
வேண்டும் நீ நற்குணமுடையவனாயின்,
நலத்தின் பொருட்டு இக்கதையை என்னிடம்
கூறியிருப்பாய்.
நீ விரும்பும் வெறுக்கத்தக்க‘
இவ்விழிவாம் முடிவின் பொருட்டன்று. உனக்கும்
நற்குணத்திற்கும் எவ்வளவு தூரமோ அவ்வளவு தூரம்
இருக்கிறது.
அவருக்கும் நீ கூறும் கதைக்கும்.
அப்படிப்பட்ட உத்தமனைத் தூஷிக்கிறாய்.
பேதையான உன்னையும் பிசாசையும் ஒன்றாய்
வெறுக்கும் பெண்மணியை வேண்டி விரும்புகிறாய் நீ.
என்ன, ஐயோ! விசாகா! அரசராகிய என் தந்தையிடம் நீ
கொண்ட துர்எண்ணத்தை அறிவிக்கிறேன்.
படுக்காளியான
பாதகனொருவன், பாண்டிய நாட்டுப் பாத்தையர் வீதியில்
வியாபாரம் செய்வது போல், தன் அரண்மனையிலும்
வியாபாரம் செய்து அவனது துர் எண்ணங்களையெல்லாம்
இங்கு அனைவருக்கும் வெளிபடுத்தும்படி விடுதல்,
சரியென நினைக்கிறாரோ பார்ப்போம் – ஆயினும்‘
அந்தோ – தன் அரண்மனையை அவர் கவனிப்ப
தேயில்லை.
தனது பெண்ணையும் மதிப்பதில்லை
என்ன, ஐயோ விசாகா.
The spurt of translations of Shakespeare’s work in Tamil that held/hold the stage were due to the pioneering efforts of Pammal Sambanda Mudaliar’s adapted versions.
It can be said with confidence that it inaugurated a new era and opened the floodgates for Shakespere.
5
A FEW OTHER VETERAN SHAKESPEARE TRANSLATORS:
Academicians and Artists
Translation of Shakespeare’s plays which began as early as in 1870 had its own limitations for the creative artists, who were seeking a language to present the original text in retaining the form and expression.
In due course, translation was at the cross roads; the language changing from elementary simplicity to complex representation, invoking cultural connotations.
Translation reached a stage of maturity in the nineteen fifties with contributions from an array of translators.
A few of them with legal and academic backgrounds, were outstanding.
Kala Nilayam T.N.Seshachalam and Justice Maharajan, like Pammal Sambanda Mudaliar, belong to the legal profession and were connoisseurs of art and culture.
Academicians like Dr.A.C.Chettiar, a renowned university Professor, Professor Narayanaswamy Naidu, Principal of a college and Professors C.K.Myleru and K.R.Srinivasa Iyengar, both outstanding teachers of eminence, also attempted translations of Shakespeare’s Plays.
The pioneering work of translating Shakespeare in Tamil which began even before 1900s gathered momentum in the early decades of the 20th century and by 1933, nearly 54 translations were available.
Pammal Sambandha Mudaliar’s pioneering efforts in setting the trend for enacting Shakespeare’s translated versions, gave a new impetus to the modern translators, among whom was T.N.Seshachalam, a translator, scholar and critic, all rolled into one.
In the early nineteen thirties, the Shakespeare phenomenon and the Shakespeare effect came to be understood without any inhibition.
The adapted translations and the transcreative action, straightaway rendered a play without much ado about tabooed passages and most of the modern translations did not even resort to localization or even adaptation as their predecessors did.
Cultural imbalances and clash of moral values ceased to worry the translators and a new aesthetic and liberal spirit of the educated readers became strongly responsive to the Shakesperean plays.
Favorable academic climate, a growing demand for popular student editions prepared by A.W.Verity and K.Deighton, and a compulsory study of one Shakespeare play in the Intermediate classes, and two in the Degree classes increased the interest in the study of the works of British poets, dramatists and novelists.
These were great contributing factors in bringing Shakespeare’s mind and art, without any damage as far as possible, to the spirit of the original.
The earliest of the modern translations was by T.N.Seshachalam.
Though he was a lawyer by profession, he was also a scholar, both in English and Tamil.
He serialized the translations of his plays in Kala Nilayam, a literary weekly that he founded. Julius Caesar (1932) and The Tempest (1933) were serialized in dramatic prose form along with the songs.
Of the two, Julius Caesar has appeared in a book form, while The Tempest has not been published so far.
He encouraged his friend T.S.Nataraja Pillai to translate portions of King John which was serialized in Kala Nilayam.
T.N.Seshachalam must be given the credit for popularizing Shakespeare in the world of Tamil scholars.
T.N.Seshachalam known for his profound scholarship, could with great ease, make a comparative study of Vaali’s death with that of Caesar’s, as both were killed from behind.
Vaali’s vain boasting prior to his meeting with Rama and Caesar’s disregard for Calpurnia’s plea are beautifully equated against the Aristotelian notion of hubris.
He induced the Tamil readers not only to derive aesthetic pleasure by reading Shakespeare, but also to admire the poet’s great creative genius.
His translations have a neat, clear format.
Vertically, one half of a page carried the translated Tamil text of the play and the other half, notes and comments.
Every scene is prefaced by an observation that enables the reader not only to understand the contents of the scene, but also to view it critically.
– முனைவர் ஔவை அருள்
தொடர்புக்கு dr.n.arul@gmail.com
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