The Tarjim initiative provides a valuable platform for Indian booklovers to connect with Saudi and wider Arab culture, and if it promotes a deeper understanding between the two nations, as the press release invariably say, that’s a bonus.
The New Delhi World Book Fair is a very different animal from the larger Kolkata International Book Fair, and nowhere is that clearer than with the video of the Saudi pavilion at the NDWBF in this report from Arab News.
Insights
Arab News, running a Saudi press release, offers some further insights about the pavilion and the Tarjim initiative, which brings English-language translations of Arabic titles to India and beyond.
Saudi Arabia, which was the NDWBF Guest of Honour in 2024, is represented this year by the Literature, Publishing and Translation Commission, a government agency managing literature in the Kingdom.
Tarjim Initiative
The Tarjim programme, launched in 2020 under Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, promotes international cultural outreach. The Saudi pavilion showcases English translations of Arabic classics, fiction, and short stories, and we are told, backed by some visitor quotes, it is attracting a significant audience
Visitor Impressions
Mona Lisa, a Delhi-based lawyer, appreciated the initiative’s role in removing linguistic barriers and helping Indians understand Saudi culture better. (And I have to add, if I ever needed a lawyer in India, I’d want one called Mona Lisa!)
Zohra Fatima was particularly drawn to the short fiction stories, which she saw as a way to deeply understand Saudi life.
Dr. Prathasari Das, a library information officer at the National Library of India, highlighted the importance of Saudi Arabia’s national bibliography in showcasing the Kingdom’s print culture to India.
Language and Cultural Exchange
For visitors like Shivani Nagar, a French linguistics student, the pavilion offered an opportunity to learn Arabic and explore Saudi culture through literature. The presence of English translations made it easier for non-Arabic speakers to engage with the rich cultural heritage of Saudi Arabia.
Back To The Real World
I’ve no doubt the impressions are genuine, but press releases are there to paint a rosy picture, and in the age of AI I’m sure press releases will become ever more Pollyannic – Gen. AI’s default mode seems to be to please the prompter and avoid controversy.
But that’s a topic for a TNPS op-ed, not a news briefing, so let me say here that so far the NDWBF looks to be going well, and the Saudi pavilion is looking great. Wish I could be there to see this all first hand, but school comes first.
The Tarjim initiative provides a valuable platform for Indian booklovers to connect with Saudi and wider Arab culture, and if it promotes a deeper understanding between the two nations, as the press release invariably say, that’s a bonus.
This post first appeared in the TNPS LinkedIn newsfeed.
