Navigating Cultural Topographies: A Vinay and Darbelnet Analysis of Translation Strategies in Ghulam Abbas’s Aanandi

Translation is more than replacing words from one language with another; it is a complex process of cultural exchange that forges connections among languages and traditions. It enables literary worlds to interact across time and place, a phenomenon especially visible in South Asia, where linguistic diversity sometimes fosters harmony but also creates tensions. In such contexts, translation becomes vital for understanding perspectives, negotiating cultures, and addressing power struggles, though it may also involve a loss of meaning. This study analyzes Aanandi, a short story by renowned Urdu writer Ghulam Abbas. Regarded as a remarkable twentieth-century work with allegorical depth, Aanandi explores challenges faced by traditional communities encountering moral hypocrisy, government control, and modernity. Its thematic and stylistic richness makes it an ideal case for testing in translation. The analysis employs Jean-Paul Vinay and Jean Darbelnet’s translation model, which combines direct and oblique methods. Direct strategies comprising borrowing, calque, and literal translation help preserve linguistic and cultural features in the target text. Oblique strategies consisting of transposition, modulation, adaptation, and equivalence which effectively convey culturally embedded idioms, symbolic meanings, and biting satire. Together, these strategies reshape themes of gender, social critique, and ideology, presenting Urdu literature anew on the global English-speaking stage. The interaction between the Urdu original and its English translation highlights the dual significance of this study. It introduces Abbas’s literary art to a global audience while enriching Urdu literary criticism. Moreover, it demonstrates the contemporary relevance of applying Western translation frameworks to South Asian literature.