Weer Rajendra Rishi (September 23, 1917 – December 1, 2002
Rishi Roma) was an Indian

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

, diplomatic translator, and Romani studies scholar. Rishi was born Waliati Ram Rishi in Makarampur,

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

on September 23, 1917. He married in 1938 and entered the civil service soon thereafter. He changed his given names to Weer Rajendra in 1948. He completed an MA in Russian language and literature, and in 1950, another MA in English at

Nagpur University Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University (RTMNU), formerly Nagpur University, is a Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Nagpur, Maharashtra. It is one of India's oldest universities, as well as th ...

. Rishi worked in the Indian Embassy at Moscow (1950–52) and later, at the Indian High Commissions at Singapore (1962–65) and London (1969–71). His Russian language skills allowed him to worked as interpreter for various Soviet dignitaries including

Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and Premier of the Soviet Union, chairm ...

, Marshal Bulganin, Marshal Voroshilov, Marshal Zakharov and Prime Minister

Alexei Kosygin Alexei Nikolayevich Kosygin ( rus, Алексе́й Никола́евич Косы́гин, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ kɐˈsɨɡʲɪn; – 18 December 1980) was a Soviet statesman during the Cold War. He served as the Premi ...

. He also served as an interpreter for the ex-

President of India The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu ...

, Dr.

Rajendra Prasad Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, Indian independence activist, journalist & scholar who served as the first president of Republic of India from 1950 to 1962. He joined the Indian Nationa ...

, on an official visit to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

in 1960. Rishi retired from the

Indian Foreign Service The Indian Foreign Service (IFS) is the diplomatic service and a central civil service of the Government of India under the Ministry of External Affairs. The Foreign Secretary is the head of the service. Vinay Mohan Kwatra is the 34th and the ...

in 1973.Indian Institute of Romani Studies
/ref> Rishi then served as the Director of the Indian Institute of Romani Studies at

Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which al ...

and the editor of ''Roma - Half-Yearly Journal on the Life, Language and Culture of Roma.'' He was later named Honorary President of the

International Romani Union The International Romani Union ( rom, Romano Internacionalno Jekhetanipe), formerly known as the International Gypsy Committee and International Rom Committee, is an organization active for the rights of the Romani people. Its seat is in Vienna. ...

. He died in Chandigarh on December 1, 2002, aged 85.

Honours

Rishi received India's

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

award in 1970. He also received a National Millennium Award at the Millennium World Hindi Conference in 2000.Rajendra Rishi to get millennium award
ChandigarhTribune News Service, September 8, 2000

Bibliography

* Hindi translation of

Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...

's poem '' The Gypsies'' (1955) * ''Russian-Hindi Dictionary'', with foreword by the late

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

(Naʼī Dihlī : Sāhitya Akādemī, 1957) * ''Russian Grammar''

n Hindi N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

* ''Russian Folklore''

* ''Marriages of the Orient'' (Singapore: Chopmen Enterprises, 1970) * ''History of Russian literature''

(1972) * ''Roma - The Panjabi Emigrants in Europe, Central and Middle Asia, the USSR, and the Americas'' (Patiala: Punjabi University, 1976 & 1996) * ''Multilingual Romani Dictionary'' omani/English/Hindi/Russian/French(Chandigarh, India: Roma Publications, 1974) * ''Romani-Punjabi-English Conversation Book''(Patial, India: Language Dept., Punjab, 1980) * ''Romani-Punjabi-English Dictionary'' (Patial, India: Language Dept., Punjab, 1981) * ''India & Russia - Linguistic & Cultural Affinity'' (Chandigarh, India: Roma Publications, 1982) * ''Gandamula To Sumeru''

is autobiography In linguistics, a copula (plural: copulas or copulae; list of glossing abbreviations, abbreviated ) is a word or phrase that links the subject (grammar), subject of a sentence (linguistics), sentence to a subject complement, such as the word '' ...

(Chandigarh, India: Roma Publications, 1992) * ''Learn Romani - set of 20 lessons''

References

External links

Website of Indian Institute of Romani Studies, founded by Dr. W.R. Rishi
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rishi, Weer Rajendra Linguists of Romani Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education People from Punjab, India Romani studies 1917 births 2002 deaths Indian expatriates in the Soviet Union Indian expatriates in Singapore