Arabic version of Ya Allah released

The second edition of the Arabic translation of Ya Allah, a collection of poems written by the internationally renowned Indian novelist and poetess Kamala Surayya was released during a ceremony at the International Book Fair in Riyadh on Wednesday, March 3.

Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Abdullah Al-Jasser launched the book by giving a copy to Hamza Abbas, editor in chief of Gulf Madhyamam daily. The book is published by the Kerala-based Islamic Publishing House (IPH), the only Indian participant at the fair. This is the second time IPH is taking part in the show.

“Last year there was big demand for ‘Ya Allah’ as all the Arabic and Malayalam copies of the book were sold out during the fair,” said Abdullah Manham, public relations manager of IPH.

Surayya (former name Madhavikutty), born to an aristocratic Hindu family, embraced Islam toward the evening of her life, on Dec. 11, 1999. She was short-listed for the Nobel Prize on the strength of her poetry collection “Summer in Calcutta.” She had received several honors including the Kerala Sahitya Academy Award, the Asian World Prize and the Indira Priyadarshini Award.

Full report here Arab News