I'm breaking my social media absence to make an announcement. I have just joined Zero Degree Publishing and will be taking care of the English division. I want to put it out there that we would like to offer all a home. (1/2)
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Nandini Krishnan
@k_nandini
Mother of 14 dogs, 19 cats, waitress to 45 animals; vegan; one of those animal rights people; writer, translator, stand-up comedienne in my spare time.
Nandini Krishnan’s posts
I'm breaking social media silence to talk about something awful that happened to me recently. I was recently shortlisted twice for a translation prize - a Tamil translation and Urdu translation by me are in competition with each other.
This is my personal magnum opus as translator. Kalki's Ponniyin Selvan in ten volumes, with detailed notes and stunning covers, the first of which you can own now:
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If it is good enough for and her team, it is good enough for us. No questions asked, except whether we can afford you. If we can't, we'll find a way around it. Do email me at nandini@zerodegreepublishing.com to take this forward. (2/2)
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I asked for my name to be withdrawn from the shortlist, in response to their stating that although they have changed their minds about the winner, I should be proud to be on their shortlist. Err...no.
I reviewed the brilliant 's first translated collection, வனப்பேச்சி - Internal Colloquies - rendered in English by Dr. C T Indra, for Sahitya Akademi's journal Indian Literature
Unpacked #FirstFlood, Vol 1 of my new translation of Ponniyin Selvan from . Delightfully, it was hand-delivered, and reminded me of EastWest books and Madras Book Club meetings with Mr. Padmanabhan Sr. quietly standing by his authors
My whole tryst with Ponniyin Selvan began when I decided I would find a sentence in English that read as poetically as "Aadi andamillaada kaala vellaththil, karpanai odaththil..."
Here's what I found, the very first excerpt from Volume 1, First Flood:
The Tamil poet Salma, whom I'm proud to call a friend, was in this session on "Reclaiming the mother tongue". Moderated brilliantly by , who had the unenviable job of ensuring four great speakers had their say, this session is a must-watch:
What a lovely photo of a lovely virtual book launch. Taken by Instagram user Sudipta Saha at the handle presented_by_s
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All this after ANNOUNCING to me that I had won. And no apology either. I'm quite disgusted with the prize and jury both, and I feel rather sorry for whoever else will win. If by some chance it's my other translation, quite needless to say, I won't be accepting the award :-)
After all the unpleasantness with which I've had to deal of late, here is some real joy.
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First copies in! @k_nandini @EkaWestland @amritatalwar @saurabhgarge @LifeInFootnotes @minthakur
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In my usually sensible mother's sensible words, "If they were going to succumb to some pressure to change their minds, they needn't have told you at the least." Quite how I feel.
Cannot stop reading this sentence in #MilkTeeth by : "They were curled up like two commas placed together, a typo in the story of the universe." I was struck by the originality of an extract in 2014. The book offers exquisite pieces of linguistic ballet.
In Madras and Thrissur: "Oh my god, the Dhananjayans are in some ad!" Everywhere else: "You know the Vodafone couple are famous dancers?!"
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Except I also got a congratulatory email telling me I had actually won, but to please keep it to myself until the shortlist was announced on April 3 and the winner on April 10.
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Oh, the award was that the book would be published in the US. Apparently less than 1 per cent of translated works published in the US are from South Asia and our jury is fighting that battle for us.
At the book launch of "The Throb of Silence" by , I got to take this picture with my dearest Sumathy Akka, us holding each other's books ❤
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I would even understand if there were a serious charge, or any charge, against me or the author, from plagiarism to poor grammar. Their excuse is that they are suddenly worried the character's opinions may expose them to legal action (?!)
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Through all this, I wonder which the more rubbish thing to do was - announce, congratulate and withdraw, or make me waste a weekend so they could have grounds for hogwash.
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Among those who knew was the editor of a prestigious online platform, on which an excerpt from the winning work was to be published, which signed a contract with me and made arrangements to pay for the excerpt.
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Then, I got an email on April 6 from the jury chair, asking me about specific passages I had mentioned in my application, which it had belatedly occurred to them they might want to read before making the prize announcement.
It's been just over a year since #InvisibleMen was published. I've got my royalty statements for the first time in 8 months, and I'm THRILLED by the numbers. Nearly all the copies that were printed have sold out, and thousands more have been read as eBooks flipkart.com/invisible-men/
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The mental torment of being told I'd won and then told I hadn't (which their legal counsel has not said could expose them to legal action from the third world, where people have no rights and emotions, of course) aside, I'm glad I don't have to work with them.
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I worked through the weekend to get it ready - they wanted it latest by April 10 - and then got an email two days later, my only acknowledgement of the receipt of the excerpts, claiming the jury (which comprises seven members) has read the new excerpts and changed its mind.
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And they say they don't have the time and resources to enter into an editorial process with the author, to avoid said hypothetical legal action. Don't have time to engage in an editorial process for an award aa?
Yet another hilarious and accurate piece by on how health paranoia is the most useful kind of paranoia and should be used to clean up the country:
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So much for the credibility of this award, in its inaugural year.
Where talks politics, speaks of "double rainbows and puppies" and asks evil trick questions :-)
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Hey #LitforLifers, #ICYMI Watch @durjoydatta, @preetishenoy, @_RavinderSingh_ & @k_nandini @TheHindu #LFL2017
bit.ly/2p3uPow
No. 5 in Books and No. 1 in Literature and Fiction! #Estuary by #PerumalMurugan, my first translation from Tamil, published by
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I like how everyone pretends nothing happened till the soldier gets up, and then they pat him for being a good puppy. And then the stretcher arrives and he remembers he's not well.
My column for on why total prohibition will not work in Tamil Nadu #LiquorBan #TASMAC sify.com/news/liquor-ba
For those who missed yesterday's virtual launch, here's the video from , with a fitting climax - 's spellbinding rendition of Perumal Murugan's lyrics: facebook.com/kolkatalitmeet
Also can #BiggBossTamil please mute the nurse lady's mic.? My ears hurt so much from the nasal tone my eardrums are going to burst.
Kamal Haasan just started a North-South debate on #BiggBossTamil "Hindi and Tamil aren't two Indias. But this India has more self respect."
And your editor should be fired RT Clothes should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to show you're a lady
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I thought you were talking about the wrestler Kamala. He was James Harris, but became mononymically "Kamala".
google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.
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Perumal Murugan's Estuary, translated by @k_nandini releases today. Be that person who buys a book as soon as it releases. amazon.in/Estuary-Peruma
From social media? Real life kept me away :-) Among other things, my babies and my books.
This is particularly for new authors and books that will struggle to find second publishers. The big names and bestsellers are always fine.
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I'm breaking my social media absence to make an announcement. I have just joined Zero Degree Publishing and will be taking care of the English division. I want to put it out there that we would like to offer all @WestlandBooks a home. (1/2)
Man, this Suja girl on #BiggBossTamil is very likeable. I love the way she keeps snubbing the nurse lady.
My favourite session at so far: What Ails Indian Science, where Dr. Venki Ramakrishnan has just outlined the difference between science and what he subtly terms "nonsense" #LFL2019
One of my favourite things about is how much space they devote to writing about books. Three years ago, they published my 3000-odd word review of Prayaag Akbar's Leila and now a nuanced interview by with #PerumalMurugan and me, not a word cut. Heartening 😊
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I took a leave (for real) from work to finish reading Estuary.
And then, thanks to @sermoninstone, I got an opportunity to interview Perumal Murugan and translator @k_nandini for @thewire_in. Buy Estuary today! @EkaWestland @WestlandBooks @karthikavk thewire.in/books/perumal-
"Accaarding to science...Men are strong, women are light," says Aarav on #BiggBossTamil How much crap Oviya must take for louwe pa...
Just to clarify things, Vajra will not be on stage, being more into bones and his sofa than Shah Rukh Khan or economics, but he liked the book enough to try devour it multiple times. Having successfully devoured it myself, I'm so looking forward to this session with
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'Desperately Seeking Shah Rukh' presents a powerful commentary on the lives of Indian women and the ways they deal with inequities.
As interesting as it sounds, what @bshrayana has to say about her book is more interesting. In conversation with @k_nandini. @HarperCollinsIN
This is so affirming for good journalism and interaction. I often wish the media made space for interviews rather than just excerpts. Thank you to all those who do, and to journalists like who take the trouble to read so keenly.
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Loved this interview. Buying the book today. I read Ponniyin Selvan in Tamil quite a few times. After reading the translator @k_nandini 's interview, I am very excited to read it in English. twitter.com/kalyanasc/stat…
Inside the culture of abuse in theatre- the hardest article I've written, encouraged & published by theladiesfinger.com/culture-of-abu
I want to write an angry response to this gross misinterpretation of Hinduism and religion by Devdutt P in thehindu.com/opinion/lead/i
I'm thrilled to announce my book Invisible Men: Inside India's Transmasculine Networks is forthcoming from later this month. Details here: penguin.co.in/book/uncategor
Available for pre-order here:
I have the feeling Kamal Haasan has quite the crush on Oviya. "Rendu peyrum baby dhaane?" "Enakku avungale puriyudhe?" #BiggBossTamil
Fuck, man, why did #BiggBossTamil decide nurse lady and Aarthi are a package deal? I can't deal with this voice for another week.
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Why does no 1 ask Swiss politicians whether they have Indian bank a/c? I mean, we DO offer higher rates of interest! Tut tut.
Best interaction I have ever had, published in full by on her website. Here's an edited version on Scroll. #PerumalMurugan #Estuary
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How to translate Perumal Murugan: @k_nandini on her experience with ‘Estuary’ scroll.in/article/971421
An interview with the first-time translator, who is an author of two non-fiction books.
I think Kamal Haasan's interview with Oviya will end with his making her an offer to play heroine in his next film #BiggBossTamil
I was hoping would review the book, but should have known anyone who writes for her Books section would do a fantastic job. This review has really captured the essence of Estuary. First one I'm sharing because it says all that I myself would have said
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Perumal Murugan’s Estuary, ably translated into English by @k_nandini , "is a sincere portrayal of the crumbling of a middle-class Indian male stuck in a deepening chasm of isolation," writes @saudaminijain twitter.com/htTweets/statu…
Amma if I could make myself pretend to cry as easily as this nurse lady on #BiggBossTamil, I'd have escaped a lot of fines from traffic cops
Look what came in the post today! My #InvisibleMen published by and with this beautiful endorsement by Amit Chaudhuri.
Invisible even among the marginalised, the transmen of India are just beginning to form their networks. My story: series.fountainink.in/to-be-a-man/
Kamal Haasan's cringe-inducing attempts to announce his entry into politics on #BiggBossTamil are destroying the fan base he's built in film
For everyone asking, yes, it was the Armory Square translation award. I've gone public with this, and has covered the story:
indianexpress.com/article/books-
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I'm breaking social media silence to talk about something awful that happened to me recently. I was recently shortlisted twice for a translation prize - a Tamil translation and Urdu translation by me are in competition with each other.
This is most Indian stand-up comics for you. They'll proudly put their name to a lifted set and assume no one else has seen the original.
Naturally, this is only after March 31. As a Westland author myself, I'm hoping with the rest of you that our homegrown brand lives on and this tweet will be redundant. Other manuscripts are also welcome for submissions. Write to: nandini@zerodegreepublishing.com
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I'm breaking my social media absence to make an announcement. I have just joined Zero Degree Publishing and will be taking care of the English division. I want to put it out there that we would like to offer all @WestlandBooks a home. (1/2)
My favourite thing on Facebook is when someone writes, "Thank you all for your birthday wishes, I am overwhelmed by the love, you made my day" etc. with an inordinate number of exclamation marks and then all the comments are "Happy belated birthday" and "Sorry I forgot."
I simply can't get over this cover by . Look at the colour of the flag in this photo! I loved Delhi most when it rained. The flowers sing, the city cleans up, for about an hour you can breathe, and then there is tea and a book ❤
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Arguably my favourite session at was on music, cricket, life, and all that lies between youtube.com/watch?v=omMolR
Such a beautiful film. Envy Bombay people because you can see it on the big screen (even if you have to cross the border into Andheri :-P) twitter.com/mrrajatkapoor/
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Throwback to 2019, almost exactly a year ago and my first informal writer-translator collaboration with Perumal Murugan, posted today to celebrate the announcement of my translating his latest book, கழிமுகம், for , with editor extraordinaire
keeping it classy as always. After Arnab yells at Peter Mukerjea, a reporter accuses and harasses his son youtube.com/watch?v=sinr35
In the Sahitya Akademi's prestigious journal Indian Literature, queer theorist Dr. R. Raj Rao reviews #InvisibleMen and calls it a book students of LGBTQIA+ studies cannot afford not to read "except at their own peril". Wonderfully balanced, erudite review. (1/2)
British friend complains about the cost of an Indian visa. I send him the link to 's Oxford Union speech. Next email: "Touché"
The first excerpt from #Estuary by #PerumalMurugan (from ) is up on . Trivia for you - this was the first bit of the novel I translated for the Tamil publisher Kannan Sundaram to pitch to prospective English publishers.
It is the rare review that matters to me, and 's lovely one in is all I wanted for #FourStrokesOfLuck by Perumal Murugan
Humaare haan mein, it hasn't happened until says it has. And so here's a piece on #Estuary by #PerumalMurugan, published by . Interview with Gowri S. for The Metro Plus.
An article I wrote on why Madrasis love @sathyam_cinemas, prompted by an exceptional gesture on April 25: disbursedmeditations.blogspot.in/2013/05/why-ma
I wonder how many politicians and aspiring politicians speaking against #NEET have finished school. Including Kamal Haasan #BiggBossTamil
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He was my favourite WWF Trump Card, back in the '90s. He must have left Uganda with some Mylapore family and borrowed the name of the Maami who offered him halwa on the ship out.
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Thank you. It's just that the unprofessional manner in which this whole thing was conducted leaves a bad taste in the mouth.
Very glad Prasoon Joshi could not make it to the JLF and we had this wonderful session on critiquing literature with , , Alexander McCall Smith and Navtej Singh Sarna, moderated by . Possibly my favourite of the festival 😊
This Snehan's face on #BiggBossTamil is all like, "I want to go hug Oviya. But nurse girl is doing thangachi sentiment. What to do..."
Please tell me you guys heard Ganesh say, "Spread your legs, ladies" while doing aerobics on #BiggBossTamil
Someone asked me which famous person Kundavai looks like in my head, because I started translating the books long before the film cast was revealed. The only face that comes to mind is Ramya Krishnan. Rarely are beauty, regal bearing and a spark of intelligence as visible.
1. Curb Your Enthusiasm
2. Seinfeld
3. Blackadder
4. A Bit of Fry and Laurie
5. Black Mirror
6. Game of Thrones (Well, for about 5 seasons. I wrote them a better ending in one tweet.)
Nominating: @shruthipady
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1. Mind Your Language
2. Bold and the Beautiful
3. Wonder Years
4. Handmaid’s Tale
5. Shark Tank
6. Riverdale
@rdivia @arjun_siva @guffawer @k_nandini @Samyadutta @KrishnaKBM twitter.com/shilparathnam/…
The questions sent me were so insightful and interesting and thought-provoking, it took me longer to answer them than it did to translate the first chapter of Ponniyin Selvan. Thrilled to be able to share this interview, and his thoughtful, nuanced questions.
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The first of @k_nandini’s 10-part unabridged translation of #PonniyinSelvan, #FirstFlood, released recently. She talks about replicating Kalki’s style and tone, and much more in an interview with me in @TheFederal_News @WestlandBooks
thefederal.com/features/first
My (very long) review of the beautiful-yet-heartbreaking Farthest Field by for sify.com/news/farthest-
Here's a little something about #InvisibleMen, published by #TransLivesMatter #Transgender #Transmen #Transman #TransmanIndia #LGBT #LGBTQ #LGBTQIA:
I am touched and thrilled with this nuanced reading of #InvisibleMen by for . This is the first review of my book on India's transmasculine networks, published by Also, there is a puppy in the picture, so please click ;-) scroll.in/article/903186
Thank you to everyone who has been so very supportive and outraged on my behalf at the abject injustice of which I have been tweeting. I've decided to let the company/judges continue to embarrass themselves as they have done thus far, and look forward to my Ponniyin Selvan now.
Also love that Kamal Haasan had to beg the audience not to kill nurse lady #BiggBossTamil
Just read news of the #FTII arrests. Every day, I grow more convinced that I'm living in a police state.
Ugh...I tuned into #BiggBossTamil because Aarthi came back and I find nurse lady is back. My ears just split to her trying to sing Ennavale.
The conversation at between Perumal Murugan, and me is available on YouTube:
youtube.com/c/hlf-india
What fun this was!
When these awful actors are trying to reenact his scenes, Kamal Haasan looks like he's deciding between suicide and homicide #BiggBossTamil
I've been petitioning everyone I know at Sathyam Cinemas for years for this. Finally, I'll get to watch movies without dread. Thank you, SPI
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SPI Cinemas brings to you DND - an exclusive disturbance-free show, every Wed, starting 20th Sept 17! #DNDatSPICinemas #ForTheLoveOfCinema
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Does the nurse last think she's Silk Smitha? Man, this is like watching Charlie in drag. #BiggBossTamil