By | Abhijit Bhaduri |Keynote speaker, Author and Columnist
1. Why reading translated books is important
When I was growing up, I read a lot of Russian literature translated into English or Bengali. More recently I read 
Gulzar’s translations of Tagore in Hindi. They have been set to music by Shantanu Moitra. <listen here> I wrote about the experience of spending a day with Gulzar Saab watching him record that translation. It was a fanboy moment for me. That is when I discovered that Gulzar Saab can read Bengali. (He translated the Bangla poem to Hindi while using the Urdu script). He writes in a note book or on pieces of paper. He turned 86 on 18 Aug 2020.
I wrote about my meeting with Gulzar saab here
Today I want you to listen to this interview with Arunava Sinha who has translated 45 Bengali novels into English. He has recently translated an intriguing story called Tiger Woman written by Shirsho Bandopadhyay (I ordered the book, waiting to read it). You can read a review here. It is a historical novel with a tragic love triangle as the core story thread.
When you read a translated book, it enables you to understand other unfamiliar worlds. The most difficult part of the translation is the dialogue, says Arunava. You have to translate not what you see (read), but the words as you “hear it in your head”. Here is the interview that was sent to me by Dr Anjan Ray. Thanks
https://valleyofwords.org/podcast/arunava-sinha/
The cover design of the book is brilliant. What do you think? Do you agree that reading translations can expand our world view? Leave a comment
2. Have you heard of ‘fake podcasts’?
There are markets dedicated to fake handbags and watches and sneakers. But what is the difference between say ‘fake currency’ and ‘counterfeit currency’? Hint: All counterfeits are fakes, but all fakes are not counterfeits. Recently I was intrigued to read about ‘fake’ podcasts. So what makes a podcast fake?
Podcast creators distribute dozens of shows with the same names as popular podcasts such as ‘Serial,’ and ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ to be distributed across the podcast ecosystem. Digiday says
‘… copycats appear too, in many cases with nearly identical metadata and cover art. The fake shows appear designed to trick listeners into listening to them, so they can be monetized through ads injected automatically…’
Do you think that these podcasts should be called “fake podcasts” or “counterfeit podcasts” … yes, what do you think? Leave a comment and tell me why
3. Why do we dread hearing that phrase?
‘I have some feedback for you’… think of what that phrase can do.
You curl up expecting the worst. The word feedback is value-neutral. It could be appreciative or corrective. Corrective feedback helps us become more successful. How do we do this in a manner that makes it easy to accept – without sugar coating and diluting the feedback.
I had a professor who was hard to please. He set high standards and made us work much more than any other professor in the institute. He was less than generous with his grades. Yet, all of us thought he was very fair and was good at heart. I wonder what was his secret.
This article talks about the ‘Five-One rule’
Do share a tip you use to give feedback to people – especially when it is not complimentary. Have you worked with someone who gave you the toughest feedback but made you feel motivated enough to act on it? Leave a comment and tell us how it was done. By the way, I would value your feedback about the newsletter.
4. How long does it take to be funny for 5 min?
Atul Khatri used to be the CEO of a software firm. Then one day in his forties he decided to give it up to be a stand-up comedian. If you have watched Shah Rukh Khan host some of these film awards shows, then you may know that many of the witty one-liners are written by stand up comedians like Atul Khatri. Play to Potential is a podcast by Deepak Jayaraman where he speaks about career transitions that people navigate. This episode with Atul Khatri takes a look at how Atul moved from selling software to doing stand up comedy part time and then finally choosing comedy as his second career.
How long does it take to write jokes that last five minutes on stage? Just take a guess and leave your response before you listen to the answer.
Atul speaks of the Sindhi community in Hong Kong who have moved from selling tailored suits to VCRs, DVDs and now crypto machines. It is a lovely example of a community that has adapted to the changing times.
Republished with permission and originally published at abhijitbhaduri.com
