Bhubaneswar, July 5: Sarala Das was the first person, who attempted to render Vyasa's Mahabharat in Odia.

Known as the Sarala Mahabharat, Das's version of the epic remains an incredible feat till date. The 15th century epic will now be available in Hindi. The Odisha Sahitya Akademi would translate the book to widen its reach.

"It is noteworthy that during the period Das wrote, the novel Odia literature did not enjoy a position of greatness in society and was looked down upon and ridiculed by the kings. After the emergence of the book, the status of the Odia language got a raise," said akademi secretary Ashwini Kumar Mishra.

The novel is being translated into Hindi by Harish Chandra Mishra, a professor of Hindi at Vishva Bharati University and Niladri Bhushan Harichandan, former professor of Odia at the same varsity in Bengal.

Shankarlal Purohit, who edited the book, said Das's version of the Mahabahrat was not merely translation. "There are a lot of deviations from the original epic in his account of the Mahabharat. Das, who hailed from a peasant family in the state, has kept the plot intact but introduced numerous changes to include the culture, folk tradition and religious sentiments of Odisha during the 15th century," said Purohit.

In Sarala Mahabharat, the location and characters are based in Odisha. It also has references of deities worshipped in the state during that time.

The book will be released at the India International Centre at New Delhi on September 17.