Vasant Vasudeo Paranjpe was an Indian diplomat and an expert on China. In 1947, he came to China to study the Chinese language at Beijing University. He later worked in China, until 1957. He served as the interpreter when Nehru visited China and served as the interpreter between the Indian and Chinese delegations, translating directly between Jawaharlal Nehru and Mao Zedong in 1954. From 1974 to 1976, he was the ambassador of Addis Ababa.Mr. Vasant Vasudeo Paranjpe, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, was appointed Ambassador to Ethiopia in succession to Mr. Kailas Chandra Sen Gupta. In 1977, he was made India's ambassador to South Korea. Presented credentials on in Seoul.
In his later years, he recalled the difficulties of his job as an interpreter during Nehru's visit to China, as the Chinese language was complex and Mao had a very strong regional accent. In one incident, he recalled, at a musical evening in honor of Nehru in Shanghai conducted by its mayor, the announcer introduced a musician using the Chinese pronoun “ta” (he/she/it). Paranjpe translated it as “he,” but when a woman appeared after the curtains were raised, Nehru angrily rebuked him for his mistake, questioning him if he knew Chinese well enough.
See also Sino-Indian relations
References
External links V. V. Paranjpe, "How to understand China"