Shades of emotion

Hindi poetry book Uns, written by city-based Nisha Luthra, who is a poet, theatre and film director and also founder-director of The Narrators Performing Arts Society, was unveiled in multiple languages at the Government Museum and Art Gallery’s Auditorium, Sector 10, Chandigarh.

The launch commenced on a musical note with a sitar recital by Nishant and who was accompanied on tabla by Dinesh Kumar, which added a captivating musical dimension to the occasion.

The launch was organised by The Narrators Performing Arts Society in collaboration with The Om Puri Foundation, Chandigarh Sangeet Natak Academy, Punjabi Lekhak Sabha, Haryana Sahitya and Sanskriti Academy (Urdu Cell), The Wise Owl and Abhishek Publications. Originally launched in 2022, Uns has now been translated in Punjabi, Urdu, Assamese, English and French.

Sharing her thoughts, Nandita Puri, founder, Om Puri Foundation, who is a screenplay writer and has authored many books, said, “I am honoured to unveil these translations of Nisha’s Hindi poetry book Uns in five different languages. The reach of the book will increase manifold. The occasion was also a celebration of the rich tapestry of linguistic and poetic diversity that India boasts of.”

Nisha Luthra said, “Poetry has always been a subtle way to heal. Uns is a silhouette of mellowed rhythms consisting of my emotions. Uns was launched in March, 2022. After which I got a chance to meet the late Surjit Patar, the legendary Punjabi poet and writer. He was the force that motivated me to get Uns’ Punjabi translation rolling. As luck would have it I kept on meeting and working with people who chartered the emotions and longings in their intimate tones. All the translators rendered my poems a sensitive transcendence. It took us two years to complete five translations of the books.”

During the unveiling ceremony a tribute was also paid to legendary Surjit Patar, who wrote the foreword for the Punjabi translation of Uns and was a steadfast supporter of Nisha Luthra’s poetry. In a heartfelt tribute, Luthra recalled Patar’s inspiring words, “A Punjaban should also write in Punjabi.” Nisha added,”Patar ji’s encouragement was a guiding light in my poetic journey.”

The team of translators Charanjit Singh (Punjabi), Anwar Anjum (Urdu), Ranjit Dutta (Assamese), Sonia Chauhan (English) and Roopam Singh (French) was also present. The audience enjoyed a selection of poems from all translations alongside readings from the original Hindi text.

— Preeti Thakur