Chandigarh, February 5, 2025- A special lecture on "Translation of Ghalib, Sauda and Manto into French" was organized at the Urdu Department of Punjab University, Chandigarh. In which Professor Alain Dessoliers, a well-known writer, researcher and translator of Paris University (France), participating as a special guest, said that the perfection of any literature is not possible without poetry, painting and Sufism. Visual references are also required to create the quality of the original in translation.
Professor Alain Dessoliers further said that the same themes are found in French literature as are found in Urdu literature. Talking about Ghalib's poetry, he said that such ideas are also found in French poetry. Poetry like Mirza Muhammad Rafi Sauda which reflects the mockery and chaos in the city, has a similar tone in French and Spanish languages.
Prof. Allen mentioned classical stories of Arabic, Persian and Urdu as well as stories in French language and said that some stories were added in the French translation of 'Alif Laila' which were not present in the original story. This was done because 'Alif Laila' had become very popular among the people at that time. Similarly, he mentioned the style of Chaupais and said that French and European languages are also rich in this style. Talking about Manto, Prof. Allen said that he has tried to bring people closer to Urdu language and literature by translating more than 40 stories of Manto into French.
Chairman of Urdu Department Dr. Ali Abbas while welcoming the guests said that the translation of Urdu poetry and literature in any language will remain incomplete without Ghalib. He further said that neither the Urdu poetry before Ghalib nor the Urdu poetry after him could have reached the breadth of expression and the world of meaning without him. Dr. Abbas said that the Urdu Department of Punjab University has always been inviting experts from different languages so that the students can be introduced to Urdu literature as well as literature of other languages.
Dr. Abdul Rashid Manhas from the Department of Urdu, Jammu University, Jammu also participated as a guest and expressed his views and appreciated the literary activities of the department. Dr. Alok from the French Department also expressed his views and talked about French and Urdu literature.
At the end of the program, the students of the department asked interesting questions to Prof. Allen, which he answered in detail.
The program was conducted by Khaliqur Rahman, a research scholar of the Urdu Department, while the closing speech was given by Dr. Zulfiqar Ali, a teacher of the Persian Department. He thanked the guests and other participants and declared the program concluded.