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 It is a compact air-conditioned room of Sofil Information Systems.
Forty one-year-old Ramanujam was looking intently at his computer screen and as he mouthed
the words, they flashed on it. Occasionally, he stopped to consult a fat book equalling
the size of a pillow. "At times work becomes hectic. We may have to finish several
pages a day. But it is good for me because I learn something everyday," he said
shutting down his system. Ramanujam is one of the many professionals trying to take
advantage of the rapidly-growing service sector translation as a portent service sector.
"I was previously working as a personnel manager in a reputed company," Ramu
revealed sipping his tea in the office canteen, "Then through my relatives, I came to
know that there are good career prospects in language translation. That was how I learnt
Japanese.
Ramu
is the senior translator in his company, which deals with Japanese customers. "What
we do here is to translate software from English to Japanese. We have over 16
translators," says P T Kannan who heads the desk. He said the trend of learning
Japanese started in the early '90s. The growth was rapid as many software professionals
wanted to learn the language, the only way to find a job in that country. "Certainly,
the growth is because of the boom in the software industry. But, I have also seen many
Chennai-based companies tying up with the Japanese companies and requiring
translators," he said.  It's the usual busy weekend for the staff and students of
ABK-AOTS Dosokai Tamil Nadu centre, as the Japanese classes are on in full swing.
Ramanujam, who also takes classes here, says the only aim of many of his students is to
get a passport to Japan. "You see, I am talking about the majority. Of course, there
are a few who learn the language for business purposes or just for the heck of it,"
he says. As the prime place for Japanese language, companies and individuals approach
ABK-AOTS for translation and interpretation work, which provides a helpful part-time job
for many casual learners of this language.
Although
many are benefited by the growth in the translation sector, some like Prabhu Dutta, a
translator with Ford, would still believe that this cannot be true of all foreign language
translators. "I agree that translation has come to the stage where corporates now
have to acknowledge its presence. But still, there is a credibility problem. For example,
if I tell someone that I can do German or French translation, the first thing he/she would
like to know is how I can authenticate my work. Of course, in the case of the above two
languages, I can show my qualification. But the question would still persist," he
explains. Partly because the growth in this sector is not widely accepted, at least in
Chennai. "In Mumbai or in Bangalore, translators set up their own offices and
function as professionals, and they are treated so. But in the south, we don't really
accept anything until it is thoroughly organised. I feel it will take a long time for
translations to become an organised sector. Till then, it will not be accepted as a
full-fledged profession," says Prabhu.
 Unlike
Japanese, there are few signs of growth in other foreign languages like French and German,
other than its use in the traditional industry. Prabhu Dutta says that mostly the
automobile, leather and textile industries use translators for these European languages.
He also points out that the credibility of translators and interpreters at large is
affected by a few fakes. "These fakes pick up a few expressions and try talking to
the native speaker in front of his client. But mostly he asks the native speaker to speak
slowly and somehow create an impression that he can handle that language. It is only later
that the client realises that this person is a fake. You see, these people ruin the growth
of this sector. As a result, there is less acceptance by corporates and less returns for
those who take up translation services seriously," explains Prabhu.
Back
in Sofil Information Systems, a young colleague of Ramanujam, Fareeda has a different
idea. Though a translator, she has other plans. "My aim is to be a programmer. In
fact, if you want to work as a programmer in Japan, you have to learn Japanese. That's the
only way I can see my career proceed," contends Fareeda. In Sofil and elsewhere, this
is indeed the growing trend. According to Kannan, this is the reason for the increasing
demand for translators and interpreters in Japanese. "I have been in this field for
20 years. The growth was much slower in the '80s while being steady in the past decade. I
can see a great future for this sector, not because of industrial growth but because jobs
are becoming more specific and require special training. Translation is in many ways a
specific job that requires special training. So, youngsters of today should immediately
choose this," he says. With the changing times, it may not be too long before this
sector becomes a lucrative one. But that won't discourage anyone.
L. Subramani
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