Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s2.t3.16

v2.c10.s2.t3.16

He translated *My Escape to the Sala Beach* in 1908, and this indicates his concerns for the fate of India and worries about the future of China. When this translation was published at *Min Bao*, it noted that “this was written by Chocha of South India, and translated by a traveller”. He stated in *Translator’s Introduction*, “This is a dairy of an Indian and translated from an English version. Through fairy tales the Indian expresses his grief at the subjugation of his nation. Those wearing red hats and carrying guns refer to the white people”. Since Su Manshu had added his imagination to the translation of *Les Misérables* by Victor Hugo, there are some who doubt that he could have written this on his own. So far, it is still not known who was the so-called Chocha, and it is hard to find the original text of *My Escape to the Sala Beach*. Fantastic, undulating and structurally complete, the novel portrays the courage with which the Indians resisted against the colonists, and Su Manshu uses this book with a purpose to warn Chinese of possible subjugation and to encourage Chinese to resist and rebel, and it also probes why India was subjugated, and expresses the translator’s deep sympathy with Indian people.