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Christian Weiß founded Draupadi Verlag in Heidelberg in 2003 to bring literature from India and other South Asian countries to German readers. A first trip to India in 1983, years of studying Bengali, and the difficulty of finding publishers for his translations led him to create a press devoted to literary exchange across languages and borders.
Who is Christian Weiß?
Weiß was born in a suburb of Stuttgart in the late 1950s. As a child, he first heard stories about India from a piano teacher who admired Rabindranath Tagore. He later studied German and history in Heidelberg, where his interest in India developed into language study and translation.
In 1983, while still a student, he joined a group travelling to Kolkata and began Bengali classes at Heidelberg University’s South Asia Institute with poet and writer Alokeranjan Dasgupta. Over three months, he visited Kolkata, Santiniketan, Darjeeling and Dakshineshwar. “Those three months in India were a real turning point in my life,” Weiß recalled in a 2021 Scroll.in profile.
Back in Heidelberg, he continued studying Bengali. After completing his studies, he worked for Springer Verlag while translating Bengali literature into German. Finding few suitable publishers for the work helped prompt him to establish a press of his own.
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Why did he found Draupadi Verlag?
Weiß founded Draupadi Verlag in Heidelberg in autumn 2003. The publisher says it began in response to the scarcity of German translations of writing in major Indian languages including Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Malayalam and Urdu. The press’s name reflects Weiß’s particular interest in the Mahabharata figure Draupadi: “Draupadi appealed to me more than any other figure,” he told Scroll.in.
The goal was not simply to introduce a few well-known authors. The programme expanded to include writers with less recognition in Europe and work connected to Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh. In 2015, the press also began a small Heidelberg authors’ series. Literaturforum Indien e.V. counted more than 160 Draupadi publications in its profile accessed in 2026, most related to India.
What does Draupadi Verlag publish?
Draupadi publishes German translations of novels, short stories and poetry from India and other South Asian countries, alongside non-fiction about the region’s politics, history, society, art and religion. Its catalogue spans multiple languages and literary traditions rather than representing a single, unified “Indian literature.” The publisher’s South Asian literature catalogue is a route to explore its titles, and its catalogue includes new and recent publications in 2026.
| Language or region | What the programme shows |
|---|---|
| Bengali, Hindi, Tamil, Urdu and Malayalam | Literary works and translations from among the languages represented in the press’s programme. |
| Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh | Authors and publications from countries beyond India, reflecting the press’s broader South Asian remit. |
| South Asia across disciplines | Non-fiction on politics, history, society, art and religion alongside literary titles. |
The publisher’s catalogue page for Christian Weiß (Hg.) lists 2026 publication details, while the association profile describes the press’s programme and language background. These sources offer ways into the catalogue, but they do not establish that every listed book is currently in stock.
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The 2021 Scroll.in profile describes Weiß’s choices as attentive to social justice and to writers who might otherwise be overlooked by European publishers. It points to Tulsi Ram’s writing about growing up as an untouchable, stories by Nepali women authors, and Baby Halder’s autobiography as examples of the range.
Halder’s autobiography appeared in German as Kein gewöhnliches Leben. Scroll.in reported that the German edition had sold 2,500 copies by the profile’s publication on September 18, 2021; that is a dated report, not a current sales total.
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Weiß has described the work as collaborative: “What I really enjoy is working with people. I like bringing them together – authors with translators – collaborating with them on a publishing project and helping it to succeed.” The profile says he draws on his connection with Heidelberg University’s South Asia Institute to find translators and identify works, then works with authors and translators through publication.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What recognition has Weiß and the press received?
According to Scroll.in’s 2021 profile, Weiß received the Gisela Bonn Prize of the Deutsch-Indische Gesellschaft in 2007 and the Federal Cross of Merit in 2016. The same profile reports that Draupadi Verlag received the German Publishers’ Prize in 2020. Literaturforum Indien e.V.’s current homepage also reports German Publishers’ Prize recognition for the press in 2024 and 2026.
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Where can readers find Draupadi’s books?
Readers interested in German translations of South Asian writing can browse the publisher’s catalogue of South Asian literature. For a named starting point from the profile, look for Baby Halder’s Kein gewöhnliches Leben; availability depends on the seller and edition, so check a current listing before ordering.
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