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Potter to cast his spell in Hindi soon
Bhopal, Nov 08: Harry Potter, the world`s most popular sorcerer, is now set to cast his spell in Hindi.
Bhopal, Nov 08: Harry Potter, the world's most popular sorcerer, is now set to cast his spell in Hindi.
The translation of British author J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone will hit book stands on November 14 with a first run of 40,000 copies, said Vikas Rakheja, managing director of Manjul Publishing House.
Hindi is spoken by over 400 million of India's more than 1 billion population, according to the latest census.
The first volume of the Harry Potter series appeared in English in India six years ago. But the popularity of the Hindi-dubbed Harry Potter movies prompted publishers here to explore its potential in the domestic book market, Rakheja said. "A lot of Indians are not comfortable with English," he said. "We are trying to fill that gap." Rakheja, a publisher in Bhopal, hopes to sell more than 100,000 copies of the Hindi-version, priced at 165 rupees (US$3.60) each, within a few months.
Sudhir Dixit, an assistant professor of English at the Narmada College, who translated the book to Hindi said: "It was a very difficult experience."
The translation of British author J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone will hit book stands on November 14 with a first run of 40,000 copies, said Vikas Rakheja, managing director of Manjul Publishing House.
Hindi is spoken by over 400 million of India's more than 1 billion population, according to the latest census.
The first volume of the Harry Potter series appeared in English in India six years ago. But the popularity of the Hindi-dubbed Harry Potter movies prompted publishers here to explore its potential in the domestic book market, Rakheja said. "A lot of Indians are not comfortable with English," he said. "We are trying to fill that gap." Rakheja, a publisher in Bhopal, hopes to sell more than 100,000 copies of the Hindi-version, priced at 165 rupees (US$3.60) each, within a few months.
Sudhir Dixit, an assistant professor of English at the Narmada College, who translated the book to Hindi said: "It was a very difficult experience."
"I had to read the book 35 times to get the feel of the language in my subconscious," he told The Associated Press. Manjul has built a substantial business publishing Hindi translations of self-help books.
Rakheja said he outbid 20 other publishers for the rights to translate Philospher's Stone. Financial details were not released.
The Harry Potter series has been translated into more than 60 languages worldwide.
Bureau Report