I’ve translated Bangla into English for many years, but it was only in 2006 that I first attempted something literary. During the AWP Conference in Austin, Texas, I’d been asked to read at the University of Texas on International Womens Day. I read an excerpt I translated from the Bangladeshi writer Shaheen Akhtar’s novel Talaash.

There’s some excellent literature from Bangladesh that deserves wider attention. Some translations of short stories are available, but not many novels. Alas, there’s some poor quality translation out there as well. We might well complain that it’s unfair that the novel overshadows other forms, but until our finest novels find their way into strong translations, our writing will not find much response in the outside literary world. I hope that in the coming years this situation will change.

• Once Again Love,
  published in Words Without Borders, April 2009, a translation of “Abaro Prem Ashche,” a short story by Shaheen Akhtar.

The picnic party microbus is stuck in a traffic jam. Before anyone can react, a hijra— separated from her band which is receiving a drubbing from the police—jumps on board. She finds herself stuck between a crocodile in the water and a tiger on the bank. If she gets tossed out of the vehicle, the police are sure to grab and beat her.

• Every Day, One Handkerchief,
  published in Star Literature Eid Special, October 2007, a translation of “Protidin Ekti Rumal,” a short story by Mahmudul Haque.

Visiting the in-laws with a rusted tin suitcase in one hand and a jackfruit in the other, raising a litter of children, fetching sour pickles for the wife, roaming the footpaths and bazaars for tiny shrimp and cut pieces of fabric — that’s become the grand total of your life’s ideals.

• Torn Wire,
  published in The Daily Star, January 19, 2007, a translation of “Chera Tar,” a story by Mahmudul Haque.

  Since I took to walking, I now come across quite a few people around town. I bump into people I haven’t stayed in touch with or seen in twenty or thirty years.