Translating book on Lachit Barphukan an enriching experience, says writer Munjuluri Krishna Kumari

Writer Munjuluri Krishna Kumari translates Assam's Braveheart Lachit Barphukan into Telugu, part of a project to bring his legacy to a wider audience.

“Before taking up this project, I didn’t know that many surnames in Assam have their origin in the numbers used by the ancient Ahom regime,” says writer Munjuluri Krishna Kumari.

She explains that in the Ahom regime, every physically fit male was required to offer his services to the defence of the king and these defence requirements were known as ‘paiks’.

Generally, four ‘paiks’ constituted a ‘got’, seven such ‘gots’ were headed by an officer who was assigned the title of ‘Bora’, five “Boras’ came under the command of another officer of a higher rank known as ‘Saikia’, 10 such Saikias that constituted of 1,000 ‘paiks’ were commanded by a ‘Hazarika’, she says, adding: “Similarly, 3,000 ‘paiks’ were commanded by a ‘Rajkhowa’, a junior to “Phukon’, who was assigned as a commander of 6,000 such ‘paiks’.”

‘Barphukan’ was one of the five great Ministers at the helm of the council of ministers constituted by the regime, she says with a smile, referring to the book Assam’s Braveheart Lachit Barphukan by English writer Arup Kumar Dutta, which she has translated into Telugu, under the title Assam Yuddha Veerudu Lachit Barphukan.

Ms. Krishna Kumari is part of the Assam Publication Board’s project that has roped in 26 translators, 23 editors and two technicians, to translate the book into 23 languages of India and bring the valour and legacy of Lachit Barphukan to a wider audience across the country.

“For Telugu translation of the book, my name was suggested by the National Book Trust Assistant Editor (Telugu) Pattipaka Mohan and Aparajita Pujari, an award-winning film critic of Assam, who is supervising the translation project, came in contact with me,” informs the former Director of All India Radio, Vijayawada.

She has completed the translation work and says that it has enriched her in terms of her knowledge about the fascinating history of the Ahom regime.