Six Characters in Search of a Translator

Six Characters in Search of an Author is an iconic play by the Italian writer Luigi Pirandello, regarded as one of the landmarks of modern theater. The events begin when six mysterious figures interrupt the rehearsal of a theater troupe, declaring that they are not actors but unfinished literary characters, whose story has yet to be completed. They demand that the director write their fate and grant them an artistic life. The play oscillates between reality and imagination, theater and meta-theater, exposing the fragile boundaries between actor and character, truth and illusion. When it was first staged in 1921, the play caused shock and controversy, yet it soon became a milestone of theatrical experimentation, raising existential questions about human identity and the role of art in reshaping the world.

This play, with its intriguing title, crossed my mind as I was preparing for the creative encounter with six authors from India, China, Russia, Azerbaijan, Nigeria, and Taiwan. The difference is that they are not in search of a writer—for they are distinguished authors, each with a rich and inspiring biography—but rather in search of a translator to speak on their behalf in the realm of the Arabic language. I became their guide: I met some of them in real life, while others I connected with through the vast space of the internet. Yet all of us were brought together by letters bound between the covers of a book!

The Silk Road Literature Series hosted its Three Continents Creative Meeting on Wednesday, 3 September 2025. In an hour online gathering, six authors from across three continents presented their works; which I translated into Arabic.  The six celebrated authors were Hemant Divate (India), Cao Shui (China), Miao yi- Tu (Taiwan), Esther Adelana (Nigeria), Inna Natcharova (Russia), and Mexosh Abdullah (Azerbaijan).

The creative meeting started with Hemant Divate (India), the author of (A Depressingly Monotonous Landscape); the first ever book published by the Silk Road Literature Series, launched in Cairo, 2016. Hemant Divate is a Marathi poet, editor, publisher, translator and poetry festival director. Later, in Mumbai, we celebrated this translation.

Hemant Divate is the author of eight poetry collections in Marathi. His most recent book in Marathi is Paranoia, which was awarded the Government of Maharashtra’s Kavi Keshavsut Award. Divate’s poems have been translated into more than 36 international languages. In translation, he has books in Spanish, Irish, Arabic, German, Estonian, and Kannada, in addition to five in English. His poems figure in numerous anthologies in Marathi, English and Slovenian.

He is the founder and editor of the Marathi literary magazine Abhidha Nantar. Abhidha Nantar has been credited with providing a solid platform for new poets and enriching the post-nineties Marathi literary scene. Divate is credited with changing the Marathi literary scene through AbhidhaNantar and the Indian English poetry scene through his imprint Poetrywala.

Divate has participated in numerous international poetry and literary festivals around the world. His publishing house, Paperwall Publishing, has published (under its imprint Poetrywala) more than 200 poetry collections.  Hemant is the founder and director of the Mumbai Poetry Festival. Hemant lives in Mumbai.

There were two rounds of poetry readings of Divate’s poems, he recited his words in his own mother tongue (Marathi), the host read them in Arabic and architect, poet and translator Mustansir Dalvi read them in English.

Hemant Divate turns to neglected moments and compels them to speak, so that they become, after contemplation, the most essential moments of life — in their sweetness and bitterness, in their purity and filth, in their loftiness and baseness. Thus, the poem plunges us into a journey with the poet, who once confessed to me that this was his most difficult collection. Yet I did not confess to him that it was also his most intimate with the Other, for globalization — which struck India after its relatively late opening-up — shocked the world, and struck us as well. What he speaks of has become comprehensible to us. The names may differ, but the suffering is the same.

Hemant Divate’s poems are like elegies — elegies for a vanished history, for broken dreams, for mental images that have been distorted, especially since the post-independence era of India some seventy years ago. In these recent decades, everything has lost its meaning, even the childhood tales that once colored the evenings in the absence of books. Today, despite the mountains of books, they have vanished.

Trademarks are the clearest imprint of globalization devouring everything, just as it devoured Amitabh Bachchan’s star in a soup-bowl advertisement I once saw in the bustle of Mumbai. Globalization now occupies the most devoted scenes of prayer in temples, dominates the most intimate moments at home, and governs the most ordinary moments in the marketplace.

Everything has fallen under the dominion of brands, as though the human being himself has become nothing more than a commodity sealed in a tin can on the shelves of planet Earth — with a marketing slogan, a price tag, and a prescribed way of life.

I asked myself: Is this confined to India alone? Do I encounter it only in Mumbai? Or have all historic cities become a deformed prey to the ogre of globalization?

The poet also recited his poem “Butterflies”:

“While rambling through the garden of my housing complex, Apropos of nothing, I told a friend: Y’know, these days, we don’t see those small, Common yellow butterflies any more. To which, he casually replied: That brand has been discontinued. “

The session continued with Cao Shui (China) and his monumental project Epic of Eurasia, an ambitious literary undertaking set to be published next year by the Cairo-based Al Nasher Publishing House, founded by Egyptian poet Magdy Aboul-Khier.

Cao Shui is a Chinese poet, novelist, screenwriter, translator, and leading figure in contemporary Chinese literature. Courtesy name Yaou (Eurasian) and pseudonym Lord of the Tower of Babel, he is founder of the Great Poetry Movement, seeking to unite sacred and secular, Eastern and Western, ancient and modern cultures. Author of over 46 books, including Epic of Eurasia, the Secret of Heaven trilogy, and King Peacock, his works—translated into 26 languages—envision a free humanity. He lives in Beijing, serving as editor of Great Poem and deputy editor of World Poetry.

Cao Shui said, in a word entitle: Eurasia, the Cradle of the Seven Major Civilizations of Humanity:

“About 100000 years ago, African Homo sapiens arrived in Mesopotamia and traveled east and west from here, from Babylon eastward to Persia, India, and China, and westward to Canaan, Egypt, and Greece, forming the seven major centers of civilization. The Eurasia is the cradle of human civilization. Humans originated from the same place and will inevitably move towards the same place. This is the theme that I want to write about in my epic of the Eurasian continent.

In history, each ethnic group has its own national epic, the most famous of which are the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Epic of Homer, and the Epic of India, which is the first epic era. Later, literati began to imitate epics, such as Virgil’s Aeneas, Dante’s Divine Comedy, Milton’s Paradise Lost, and Ferdowsi’s The Book of Kings. We are now in the era of the third epic, which is the era of ‘Great Poetry’.

So in today’s era of free verse without mystery or rhythm, what kind of state will the “third epic” or “great poem” exist in? I think it can only be internal meditation to construct the world form, external lyricism to maintain the essence of poetry, which is also the main style of the epic of the Eurasian continent. In the face of our globalized world, we should integrate sacred and secular cultures, ancient and modern cultures, West and East cultures, extracting elements from different civilizations to construct a symbolic new world.

The Great Poetry Movement was established by integrating the trends of Chinese and international literary development. In 2007, when I was 24 years old, I wrote the “Manifesto of Grand Poetry”, which systematically expounded the pursuit of literature. We know that the great German poet Goethe proposed the concept of “world literature” in 1827, but it has always developed within one’s own nation or language. The World Poetry Movement initiated by Fernando Rendon in 2011 is a new literary revolutionary force. The Great Poetry Movement transcends national boundaries and has become an international trend. Famous poets who have received the Order of Great Poetry are widely distributed in Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

This time, the famous Egyptian poet Ashraf Aboul Yazid held the “Silk Road Literature Series – The Three Continents Creative Meeting”, which is a symbol of the reality of the common ideal planet of humanity. Ashraf also translated my Epic of the Eurasia into Arabic, and I am honored to be included in the Silk Road Literature Series. This book was translated into Italy by the famous Italian poet Lamberto Garzia and into English by the American poet George Wallace, both of which are scheduled to be published this year. There are also plans to translate into Spanish, Russian, and French. We all know the metaphor of the Tower of Babel. If humans speak the same language, then the Tower of Babel will be built. Translation can largely establish a common Tower of Babel for humanity.”

Representing Taiwan, poetess and artist Miao-yi Tu shared her poem “They Are the Daughters of Siraya”, in English and Taiwanese. This poetry collection has been introduced in Arabic, and presented in The 2023 Kaohsiung World Poetry Festival, Taiwan.

Miao-Yi Tu is a writer, poet and painter. She has a degree in Literature from the National Chung-Hsing University of Taichung (Taiwan), and a master’s degree from the Dharma Realm Buddhist University in California, USA. She has published essays such as The Earth Is Still the Garden; poems such as Longing, The Standing Epiphany and The Black Ghost; and documentaries such as Sakura’s Ruby and The Golden Bat.

The author is a descendant of the Siraya people, a native population of Taiwan. She is a well-known environmental activist who has fought for the protection of the Takao Hill Nature Reserve in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. She has devoted more than three decades of her life to the cultural study of her people in a conscious search for herself through the knowledge of her origins.

 In her narrative, readers will encounter spirits and ancestral beings who will reveal to the reader the chronicles of her land. Through legend that becomes reality.

In Taiwanese and English, Miao read her poem which has the same book title; They Are Siraya’s Daughters:

They are Siraya’s daughters/ They do not know/ Their eyes are hollow / Even when encountering ancestral spirits under the coral tree/ They still cannot converse with each other, Great-grandmother only speaks the Siraya language, They speak Japanese, Taiwanese, Chinese, English, But simply cannot speak the Siraya language/ They gaze at each other/ But cannot converse / Great-grandmother lived in an era where herds of deer ran free / She liked to sing and herd sheep on the hillsides / She grew accustomed to wearing flowers upon her head / She would plant yams in the fields / She gave birth and raised her sons and daughters in thatched huts /She died in a sparse lonely woodland without herds of running deer /Her grave has already become a splendid large building /The girl that raised sheep sings no more after death / No one understands her song anymore/ Even her grandchildren do not understand / Daughter of Siraya who has lost her language / Dances dance steps of colonists in the square / Ignorantly drinking alcohol

I also read a poem in Arabic, and showed some of the paintings the author illustrated to accompany her poetic words.

On the move, Esther Adelana (Nigeria) introduced her seven-act play Ìbálé: The Broken Pot, a powerful exploration of identity and resistance against gender inequality.

Chinelo Chikelu an arts journalist with the leadership newspaper, Nigeria, asked me about Esther’s play Ibale,  “Do you think made it relatable to readers both Arabic and western readers?” I answered:

“I was astonished to find that some details of Yoruba marriage customs are almost identical to rural traditions in Egypt, such as the public confirmation of the bride’s virginity and the announcement of consummation. Equally striking is the use of myth in these practices, which transcends language and cultural boundaries. This parallel demonstrates a strong local resonance in Egypt with an African theatrical text from Nigeria.”

In Arabic, I read the book’s preface written by Prof. Maria Ajima, Professor of Literature, Benue State University, Makurdi:

“Ìbálé is an invigorating play of 7 Acts and several scenes set in two traditional Yoruba fictional communities of Iluobe and Ilukoro. Full of twists and turns, and an intermingling of gods and human characters, Adeola an adolescent girl of good character who has been brought up immersed in the traditions of her people believes in her destiny of being a bride to a prince of the neighbouring community of Iluobe as pronounced by her family oracle, the Ifa oracle. Meanwhile, she is admired by her childhood friend Adio who is highly in love with her, and wants to marry her. When Adeyemi the prince from Iluobe arrives Ilukoro to take his bride home, the unthinkable had befallen Adeola. Adeola has been raped by Adio. The punishment for not being a virgin at marriage is to be either stoned to death for being promiscuous, or to be declared a “broken pot”, and returned to her father who will in turn return the bride price. Furthermore, one from the royal blood does not get married to a broken pot and anyone who goes against the tradition invites a curse upon the land. However, Adeyemi because he loves Adeola goes against tradition and tries to protect her. As the play unfolds, human intrigues,old secrets, machievilian deals and political machinations come into play.”

 Celebrating Esther Adelana’s book has its echo; The Association of Nigerian Authors Abuja Chapter congratulated Esther Adelana on the release of her celebrated work – IBALE, in the Arabic language in Cairo, Egypt. Arc. Chukwudi Eze FANA Chairman wrote: “We celebrate your push for excellence as you break boundaries and conquer new frontiers in literary scholarship. You reflect the stuff that this executive is made of as you reach out to new heights. Congratulations again, while we await the next big news.”

 The meeting introduced Mexosh Abdullah (Azerbaijan) and his compelling short story collection The 6th Floor, which offers sharp and vivid portrayals of modern life.

Meykhosh Abdullah was born on February 2, 1962 in the village of Khalilabad, Jalilabad district of Azerbaijan. An economist by profession, Meykhosh Abdullah has worked as a writer for a long time. He has been a member of the Azerbaijan Writers’ Union since 2002. He is the recipient of the Presidential Award. Meykhosh Abdullah is the author of the books “Gazanfar Doctor”, “Restless Souls”, “Alagöz”, “The Devil’s Laughter”, “Anaconda Hunt”, “Asır Qız” and “The Woman Who Knocked on the Door at Night”. His works have been translated into Russian, Turkish, Arabic, Persian, Kyrgyz, Moldovan, Tatar, and Turkmen. A part of his story (The Sixth Floor) was introduced in Arabic and Azerbaijani.

In the story, the mother dies, and the son misses her. When the father decides to leave the town for the capital, Baku, the little boy decides to write a letter to his mother, because he will miss her. The father, driven by curiosity, reads the letter and discovers that the son has written the new home address in full detail, so that his mother may visit him as she used to in his dreams. But the father adds one missing line to the address: the sixth floor.

 From Russia, Inna Natcharova present I, Cleopatra, a richly imagined historical-literary fantasy adorned with her own miniature illustrations of Cleopatra. Due to technical problems, the communication came via a WhatsApp Call.  The host also showed the miniature paintings illustrated by the author for Cleopatra.

Inna Vladimirovna Nacharova was born in the city of Ufa in 1966. She worked for a long time in executive and legislative bodies. She has been writing books for twenty-five years. Many of her works have been translated into Bulgarian and Serbian and published in the Russian, European, and American press. She is a laureate of the Ural Prize White Wing and the All-Russian Literary Prize White Tablet. She received a diploma in the category “For Mastery” at the 3rd International Competition in Düsseldorf (Germany). At the World Folkloriada in 2021, her book Diva was presented by the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Bashkortostan to Emir Kusturica.

She was a Dictator of the “Total Dictation” campaign in 2018 at one of its venues, and headliner of the “Kitap-Bayram” Book Fair in 2024.

She was awarded a diploma and commemorative badge of Rossotrudnichestvo in Bulgaria “For Contribution to the Preservation of Russian Literature” and “Literature as a Means of Diplomacy” (2019). She was also honored with the badge of laureate of the annual literary award Heroes of the Great Victory (2020). She holds a diploma of the International Commonwealth of People’s Diplomacy for her significant contribution to the development of literature and strengthening of international creative ties (Kazakhstan, 2022). She is the winner of the international short story competition of the Gomel Plus Radio Prize (Belarus, 2022).

She is the founder of the international charitable creative project Give the World a Fairy Tale, within which several children’s books were published with illustrations by well-known Russian, Bulgarian, and Estonian artists. She is a member of the Writers’ Unions of Serbia and Russia (SKOR). Since 2011, she has been President of the International Association of Writers Sodruzhestvo.

From the book:

“I am Cleopatra—divine Queen of Egypt.
When Caesar was struck down, grief consumed me, yet sorrow swiftly burned into fury. Rage seared my heart, for in his will, Caesar forgot me… and he forgot our son, Ptolemy Caesar. All his power, all his dominions, he bestowed upon Octavian, his cold-blooded nephew.

And so, the storm of civil war rose, and I, Cleopatra, stood upon the knife’s edge. Both sides called for my favor, my patronage. Yet how could I choose? To embrace the vanquished would mean Egypt crushed beneath the victor’s heel, and the shadow of Rome falling forever upon my throne.

I resolved then to act swiftly. The legions Caesar left behind were daggers pointed at my breast, ready to turn against me at any moment. So I cast them away—sent them into battle against Dolabella, the so-called Caesarian. He was son-in-law to that viper Cicero, a man I despised, one who wore Caesar’s colors yet betrayed him to a merciless death.

And I, Cleopatra, rejoiced when those legions, once Caesar’s own, faltered before Dolabella and turned to his enemy’s side. For in their defection, I tasted triumph, and in their betrayal, I saw Rome itself tremble.”

Together, these voices underscore the Silk Road Literature Series’ mission to bridge cultures through translation and shared creativity and the Six Authors have found their Translator!