ମନୋରଂଜନ ପଟ୍ଟନାୟକ ୫୨ ବର୍ଷରୁ ଊର୍ଦ୍ଧ୍ୱ ସମୟ ଧରି ମୁମ୍ବଇରେ ରହୁଛନ୍ତି । ଏଯାଏଁ ତାଙ୍କର ୧୦ଟି ଅନୂଦିତ ପୁସ୍ତକ ପ୍ରକାଶ ପାଇଛି । ସେଗୁଡ଼ିକ ହେଲା- ‘ଓମାର କାବ୍ୟ’, ‘ମେଘଦୂତ’, ‘ଗୀତାଞ୍ଜଳି’ (ନୋବେଲ ପୁରସ୍କାର ପ୍ରାପ୍ତ), ‘ମଧୁଶାଳା’, ‘ଋତୁସଂହାର’, ‘ଓମାର ଖୈୟାମ- ରୁବାଇୟାତ’, ‘ପାବ୍ଲୋ ନେରୁଦା- ଶହେଟି ପ୍ରେମର ସନେଟ୍ ଓ ୨୦ଟି କବିତା ପ୍ରେମର ଓ ଗୋଟିଏ ଗୀତ ହତାଶାର’, ‘ଶ୍ରୀମଦ୍]ଭଗବଦ୍]ଗୀତା’, ‘ହଂସଦୂତ’, ‘ଦ୍ରଷ୍ଟା’ । ‘ମୃତ୍ୟୁବୋଧ ଜୀବନବୋଧ’ ଶ୍ରୀ ପଟ୍ଟନାୟକଙ୍କର ଏକାଦଶ ଅନୂଦିତ ପୁସ୍ତକ । ପାଠକ ପାଠିକାମାନେ ଏହାକୁ ପସନ୍ଦ କରିବେ ବୋଲି ଆଶା । ମୋ-୯୯୮୭୦୨୨୯୩୦ ।

The palpable transformations across the global arena in the aftermath of the cyber revolution and information technology explosion caused serious concern among aficionados of literature about its future. But their apprehensions appeared to be unfounded when literature withstood the onslaughts and emerged unruffled, being ensconced on a firm saddle. Literature, with its diverse genres, entertains and enlightens readers with new insights and perspectives on life, releasing them from the labyrinth of cares and anxieties, and infusing in them resilience and enthusiasm.

A creative writer observes the situations with his organic sensibility and shares his emotions and feelings passionately through objective correlatives. The writer, by the alembic of his imagination, creates an oasis in the desert of life, paints a rainbow amid the stormy tumult of society. The writer’s alchemy of creativity with the wizardry of images enthrals the readers, keeping them in a mesmerizing spell.

Against this backdrop, it is seen that translation occupies a paramount position in promoting literature on an international platform with a wider clientele. The poetry collection in Odia, “Kebala Premare” of the renowned Neo Romantic poet Dr Phani Mohanty, is translated into English as “Only in Love” by Dr Sonali Sahu. Dr Sahu has done a wonderful job in making an impeccable transfer of feelings, emotions, and thoughts of the veteran poet Dr Mohanty from the source language to the target language. I am sure she must have come across problems in finding substitutes for certain emotions, colloquial expressions, yet she has managed to overcome them by presenting the tone, tenor, and essence of feelings. Poetry in Indian languages contains certain features, such as verbal imageries, local myths, inflections, and colloquialisms, that prove to be a translator’s nightmare. Dr Sahu, with her maturity, expertise, and command over both languages, has successfully overcome the situation.

The veteran poet Dr Mohanty meticulously adheres to the poetic diction suggested by Wordsworth, always using ordinary, common, simple, and colloquial language really used by men in their day-to-day lives, for which he is widely hailed by the readers as a Neo-Romantic poet. Dr Mohanty’s poetic career spanning across five decades with more than six dozen poetry collections, numerous awards and accolades like Odisha Sahitya Akademi and Kendriya Sahitya Akademi have endeared him to the charmed circle of hordes of readers for his unique theme of love, longing, regret, passion, despair, and positive affirmation depicted with simple diction, colloquial language, and lucid expression flowing uninterruptedly from a weary heart stirred with the subtle nuances and vagaries of love.

In this Collection of poems, “Only in Love,” Dr Mohanty treats the concept of love as a pilgrimage of the human soul, an endless journey from the known to the unknown, from the physical to the metaphysical, from the real to the surreal, from the terrestrial to the ethereal, from the amorous to the philosophical and from the trivial to the sublime dimensions. The emotions, feelings, and passions in colloquial idioms unwaveringly flow like a stream where the heart understands perfectly, long before the mind attempts to decode it.

— Kamala Prasad Mahapatra

Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám is the title that Edward FitzGerald gave to his 1859 translation from Persian to English of a selection of quatrains (rubāʿiyāt) attributed to Omar Khayyam (1048-1131), dubbed “the Astronomer-Poet of Persia”.

FitzGerald’s work has been published in several hundred editions and has inspired similar translation efforts in English, Hindi and in many other languages.

Manoranjan Pattanayak’s translation in Odia would provide a pleasant reading to the Odia poetry lovers.

“I have often wondered if Haldhar Nag graduated from a poetry school. Of course, that cannot be true, but my feeling arises from the abundance of figures of speech that appear in his poetry. Unknown to him, he sprinkles liberally the effects of alliteration, metaphors, internal rhyming, personification, onomatopoeia, and what have you in his usage. Ghensali (River Ghensali) is personification at its best, where the poet personifies a river in spate as a young lass in exuberance. And yes, he has come out with sonnets too. Read Ati (Too Much) to get a taste of Haldhar sonnet. The stanzas are spaced in 4, 4, 4, 2 lines, with a proper rhyme scheme. It leaves me in wonderment again – If he did not go to a poetry school, then did God plant all these literary usages in his head?

For the sound effect, listen to Chaetar Sakaal (The Morning of March) – twelve stanzas replete with

onomatopoeic works. Pity the translator who has to preserve the special effect in another language. I take recourse to the limitations of translation once again and state the obvious: Translations can never attain the beauty of the original. If we liken the original to an attractive painting, at best, the translation can be a replica or a photograph.

A hallmark of Haldhar Nag’s poetry is what I call the Haldhar twist. It is particularly prominent in his short poems. The poet takes an abrupt turn in the direction in the last stanza, not necessarily for summarizing or moralizing. The surprise turn in the final stanza, instead, leaves the readers with a ‘wow’ effect. Very many poems in this collection display the Haldhar twist – Our village Cremation Ground, A Cubit Taller, The Dove is my Teacher, and Old Banyan Tree, to name a few”, writes the translator in his prefix.

The collection has 60 poems.