Winners

Special mentions

(Each translator wins a special mention prize of INR 5,000)

N. Kalyan Raman

I was honoured to be a member of the jury for the inaugural edition of the Mozhi Prize. It was an enjoyable experience chiefly for two reasons. One, I got a chance to read a well curated collection of stories in Tamil, many of which I hadn’t read before. Two, I had the pleasure of experiencing, as a reader, the ethos, milieu and registers of a familiar culture ably transported into another language. My congratulations to all the participants, and especially the winners, for choosing to enter the domain of ‘this little art’ of literary translation. May you efforts flourish and grow in excellence in the coming years. 

I have a few suggestions to make to the particpants on making your mark as a literary translator. In literature, only the very best texts receive wide attention and stand the test of time. So it is with translations. Therefore, choose the texts you want to translate with great care. A good translator is also an expert curator of texts for readers in the target language.. Second, translation at its best is about the struggle to find that better word, phrase and sentence. Bear in mind that it’s a struggle without end. Never stop learning from every resource available to you. Finally, reading widely and well in both languages is foundational to becoming a competent translator. Wide reading can help you cultivate your sensibility and augment your capacity for literary expression. Both are indispensable for this little art. I hope you, too, will find translation as pleasurable and exciting a pursuit as it has been to many of us over the years. 

My best wishes to all participants.

A. Muttulingam

It was a pleasure to be a member of the jury for the inaugural edition of the Mozhi Prize, which in itself is an excellent initiative and needs to be encouraged. The competition was well put-together by the team and can be a model for others doing similar projects. 

I was happy to see that the competition garnered a wide variety of translations and the submissions included both classics from the oeuvre of Tamil short fiction as well as the works of new and upcoming writers. Many of the translations were excellent. Hearty congratulations to the participants, and especially the winners. I do hope you continue to practise the art of translation and contribute to taking Tamil literature to the world stage. I encourage you to read world literature widely in the target language and develop further, the ability to transport cultural contexts to a global audience. 

Best wishes.

Deepa Bhasthi

As a non-Tamil, it was firstly an immense privilege to be able to access the works of so many Tamil writers in translation. I was very impressed with the range of stories chosen and the brilliance of so many of the translations, and it was certainly an unenviable job to pare it down to the final winners list. While I am fairly fluent in spoken Tamil, I cannot read or write the language, yet. Thanks to this, however imperfect my coordinates in the language, I was able to ‘hear’ a lot of the translated words and sentiments in Tamil, which in my book counts as a good translation. 

The act of translation is both a privilege and a labour of love, and perhaps ever more urgent in the times we live in. I sincerely hope that at least a few of these translators continue practising this magical art of cross pollinating between languages and therefore, cultures. 

I also look forward to seeing the marvellous initiative that is Mozhi expand to include more languages and enriching the translation landscape in the coming years.

We are delighted to share the profiles of the nine translators shortlisted for the Mozhi Prize 2022, by our eminent panel of judges. Congratulations to all the shortlisted translators!

Darun S

Darun S is a PhD student at EFLU, Hyderabad. He works on modern Tamil literature. Darun has translated Senthil Jegannathan’s Clarinet.

Megana Kumar

Megana Kumar is a high schooler from Virginia, USA. She is an avid reader, her favorite genres being thriller and fantasy. She is passionate about bringing more Tamil stories to the eyes of Indian American youth. She is interested in STEM, wants to pursue pathology in the future, and loves volunteering. In her free time, you can find her buried in an Amar Chithra Katha comic, writing stories, or drawing superheroes because she can’t be one (she doesn’t have the courage to wear underwear outside of her pants). Megana has translated B. Jeyamohan’s Beast.

Vignesh Hariharan

Vignesh Hariharan is an advocate by profession and a student of literature by passion. His work has appeared in journals like Vallinam and Neeli. Vignesh has translated Su. Venugopal’s Resurrection.

Sherwin Rodriguez

Sherwin S. Rodriguez is a writer and translator based out of Chennai. His poetry has been published in various journals and he is currently a recipient of a fellowship from the JCB Foundation to pursue a P.G.D. in Literary Translation. Sherwin has translated B. Jeyamohan’s Maadan Moksham.

Anjana Shekar

Anjana Shekar is an independent writer from Chennai. A year ago she transitioned from journalism to explore other forms of writing and to begin her arts practise. She is now working on short stories and scripts. She also nurtures interest in mixed-media art work. This is her first work of translation. Her writings have appeared in The News Minute and The Hindu. Anjana has translated Senthil Jagannathan’s Cotton Fever.

Mayuravarshini. M

Mayuravarshini is a twenty-two year old based in Chennai. She recently completed her Masters in English and has stepped into the world of publishing as an editorial assistant. She is fascinated by the art of translation for the opportunity it provides to pause, reflect and savour words, phrases and idioms– the flesh and blood of all conversations. Mayuravarshini has translated Vannadasan’s A Brief Strain of Music.

Amruth Varshan

Amruth Varshan is a writer and game designer from Tamil Nadu, India. He has a background in engineering but his true passion lies in the meeting of literature, language, and art. Deeply fond of both English and Tamil, he’s always trying to find new ways to express his love for words. Amruth has translated B. Jeyamohan’s Filfilee.

Padmaja Anant

Padmaja Anant is a publishing professional and enjoys reading. She is interested in translating works from Tamil and Hindi into English, across a variety of genres. Padmaja has translated Chandra Thangaraj’s A House without Cats.

V. Iswarya

Originally hailing from Chennai, Iswarya V. now teaches English at a private college in Bengaluru, India. Right from her school days, reading has been her major passion and her love for words has dictated all her career choices so far: instructional designer, communication trainer, copy editor, and finally doctoral researcher in English literature. Her research lies in the intersection of contemporary British drama and consciousness studies, drawing from both Western and Indian philosophical traditions. Apart from her research publications in academic journals and anthologies, she has occasionally written essays on Tamil film culture for popular publications as part of her social media campaign “Calling Out Stalking.” She is venturing into literary translation for the first time here after rediscovering recently her ability to read Tamil and ruing all the years she has lost so far. Iswarya has translated Jeyamohan’s Ammaiyappam.

The Mozhi Prize 2022 – Longlist