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Literary Review
A humanist first
What makes Sivasankari's fiction distinct is that it has outgrown its regional character and has become part of our national storehouse of fiction by reason of its universality. Sivasankari has carved a niche for herself as an exceptional novelist committed to serious writing on issues that matter. She has authored more than 30 novels and about 40 collections of short stories and novels, 13 travelogues and two biographies. She is presently working on a project entitled "Knit India Through Literature" which purports to interview leading writers from the 18 languages of India, each accompanied by a travelogue and an in-depth article on the cultural and literary heritage of the respective language.
A novelist who is eminently readable, her style of writing is unpretentious. It has an immediate impact on the casual page-turner as well as those who indulge in "negotiated reading", taking better control of the meaning and the text. At a book-reading function in Chennai recently, Sivasankari spoke about the transcreated version of her book The Betrayal and Other Stories (transcreated by Ameeta Agnihotri and Geetha Padmanabhan). Excerpts from an interview with PREMA SRINIVASAN.
Does your writing tend to reflect a "lived experience"?
VERY often my story is built around a true incident, snatches of conversation heard in passing or some little idea, which triggers off the creative urge within. Something felt deeply and experienced needs to be shared and this motivates me to write. Keen observation activates my empathy with fellow beings which I attempt to convey in my writing.
As a creative writer, do you consider "modernity" as merely a matter of living with constant changes and "tradition" a matter of conformity to accepted norms?
I do believe in progressive changes and always try to understand that there is another angle of vision. Change should be towards growth. A process of self-analysis helps one to be better humans. Sometimes traditional practices, if no longer relevant, are rejected. The idea is to generate a sense of permanent values through the medium of fiction.
Would you like to comment on Rushdie's statement that there is no creative writing in India except in English?
It is irresponsible on the part of a writer of such stature to talk about something he does not know. I do not claim to have an in-depth knowledge of all the existing languages in India. In fact "Knit India Through Literature" is an attempt to give visibility to the classics written in other languages.
Regional writers do not have the same visibility as the Indian writer in English; quality translations are necessary to reach a larger segment of readers. Do you feel a sense of elation with the launch of the transcreated version of The Betrayal and Other Stories?
I'm happy to reach a larger segment of readers and through transcreation the essence of the meaning is retained and the authors' intentions are conveyed better than in literal translations.
You have been called a social activist and writer with a message and mission. Do you address your readers in a voice that speaks for the cultural and moral values of our society?
All along I have only been writing on thought-provoking subjects and on issues which have affected me strongly. I do not propose to "change the world" but merely awaken a sense of response in the reader on issues that matter. Alcoholism, drugs have been used as themes not to shock people or for effect but to convey my attitude. If the reader gains a positive experience from the reading process, I'm gratified.
You have also been identified as a person preoccupied with feminist concerns. For instance the emotional entrapment of Chandra in The Betrayal and her eventual transcendence suggests a feminist point of view. Do you agree?
I do not like any tags, please. I find them confining. I'm a humanist first of all. I'm deeply concerned for humanity as a whole and in that process I highlight the indignities suffered by women on the basis of gender discrimination. Women need to be given their rightful space and respect that's due to them if they are to be liberated in the true sense of the word.
What do you think of the present trend of naturalistic writing with its emphasis on "kitchen sink mode of realism"?
I do not like any writing that is "contrived" and written with the deliberate intention of shocking the reader. There are certain standards of decorum and it is not necessary to transgress these to attract attention.
In your earlier phase of writing in Tamil there has been a strong preoccupation with romantic love, which has changed over the years. Would you like to comment?
I started writing by sheer accident. I was all set to become a bharathanatyam dancer, when I found myself an author at the age of 25. As a city bred girl I was only looking out of a small window upon an upper middle-class world, at that point of time. Love and marriage were the usual motifs then, related in my stories with truth and sincerity. When I moved to Villupuram in 1971 my angle of vision changed phenomenally, as if my perspective was from a 100-storey building! I came face to face with reality and this influenced my subsequent writing. My life in the next 13 years became meaningful as I could internalise my experience in the villages and could express these in my writing with authenticity. In 1984, I lost my husband and the following year I published Avan my novel on drug addiction, which involved considerable research. This total preoccupation with the subject helped me go forward in life.
Do you have a tendency to write about a particular section of our society?
I write about the cross-section of the society with which I'm most familiar. I feel I can authenticate these cultural nuances better and when research is required, I can also delve deep into my cultural consciousness with familiarity and have access to what has been registered a long time ago. I'm not judgemental and I make no remarks which may have any class bias.
Translation demands an "inwardness" while working on a novel in another language: not just the physical shape of the language but also the essence of one's writing needs to be conveyed. Has that happened in The Betrayal?
I agree. In The Betrayal and Other Stories, which is a transcreation, we are on the right track. It has been transcreated using appropriate analogies as the situation requires, to convey the right tone of the original text.
Translatability of a particular work has been the criteria of success in translation. Some culture specific passages may pose difficulties. Comment.
Very true. In basic regional language situations the translatability is that much easier, where we share more or less the same kind of ethnicity. It is possible to find equivalents in other Indian languages while translating from Tamil. When the subject has universality it becomes easier as in the short stories like "The Big fight" or "Be with me Mommy". Conveying the essence of such universal issues in English makes the translator's art simpler. Of course one always feels that there is scope for improvement.
Finally, is your magnum opus yet to come? Which of your works is likely to reach posterity?
I have certainly come a long way from my early writing. I have grown. I feel that the subject I choose should be relevant to this day and age and writer should be "forward looking" in anticipating trends. I have written about alcoholism, drugs and artificial insemination and euthanasia long before they gained focus as sociological issues. I would consider Palangal among others, as a book which will definitely survive the test of time. A chapter of Palangal has been recorded for the Archives of U.S. Library of Congress in my voice.
At the end of the interview Sivasankari comes across as a sincere writer committed to giving her best to her readers. She does not talk of the numerous awards and accolades garnered over a long career, but about the social and moral responsibility of a writer of contemporary fiction which in her opinion is considerable. Sivasankari acknowledges both the seriousness of her themes and the pleasure of the audience. Here, then, is a writer, who has an eye for the themes which keep reformulating themselves from generation to generation and she has the storyteller's skills to use them with a strong sense of contemporaneity.
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