English translation of Sahitya Akademi winner ‘Rohzin’ to release next month

The novel’s protagonist, Asrar, comes to Mumbai, and through his eyes, the author describes the hitherto-unknown aspects of Mumbai — unseen colours and secrets of the city’s underbelly. It is also the story of two lovers Asrar and Hina, which begins abruptly and ends tragically.

“‘Rohzin’ was published on February 14, 2016, at Jashn-e-Rekhta. And since that day, it has been widely discussed. Every reader has his own interpretation of the book. The translation of ‘Rohzin’ into English has taken almost two years, and Sabika Abbas Naqvi has done her best,” Abbas, who won India’s highest literary honour Sahitya Akademi Award in 2018 for ‘Rohzin’, told PTI.

“… The life and experiences of a reader illuminate the hidden secrets in the text, and the narrative of ‘Rohzin’ has many such aspects for a reader to illuminate. I expect that the novel will get a good response from English readers as it has already got from Urdu and German readers,” he added.

The novel’s German translation was discussed in Switzerland as part of ‘The Days of Indian Literature‘ festival in February 2018, and in May-June 2018. It has also received the prestigious Litprom grant managed by the Switzerland and German governments.

According to the publishers, the arc of the novel studies various aspects of human emotions, especially “love, longing and sexuality as sublime expressions”.
“‘Rohzin’ dwells on the plane of an imagination that takes readers on a unique journey across the city of Mumbai, a highly intriguing character in its own right,” it said in a statement.

Abbas’s previously authored books include “Nakhlistan Ki Talash” (The Search of an Oasis), “Ek Mamnua Muhabbat Ki Kahani” (A Forbidden Love Story), “Khuda Ke Saaye Mein Ankh Micholi” (Hide and Seek in the Shadow of God, 2011) and “Zindeeq” (Heretic).

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