With the English versus Hindi/vernacular languages issue cropping up recently, and with an English versus Hindi versus vernacular confrontation expected sooner than later, it is maybe time to revisit a recommendation of FG.
A National Language is at least as important as the National Flag or Anthem. Every country has one. It is a matter of identity…roots…culture…and pride. India has none – the Language, that is. We are now even willingly giving up the remnants of the best link language – Hindi. It is seen as ‘inferior’, even by many poor people now. Earlier only the ‘brown sahibs’ and the well-to-do thought so. We’ve reached a stage where the same thing said in Hindi and English has 2 different connotations/meanings – with the ‘superior’ meaning being that in English. The ‘bad times’ have befallen Hindi more – not the vernacular (normally single state) languages. All forms of signage and transactions are now ever more in English. Has globalisation, with its opportunity for BPOs/IT, been the prime reason? Or is it a reason as mundane as a job requirement today?
Hindi, though our Official Language, is not India’s universal language – it’s not even the National one of course. Sanskrit may have been better, but we gave up very early on it – and it is virtually a dead language now. What we don’t (won’t) speak, we can’t really learn. We’ve even adopted a hands-off approach to the simple Namaskaar or Namaste, which was a common greeting across India. 'Shudh' Hindi had to die a premature death – like the purity in all aspects of our culture. It has gone the way of Classical music and dance. We’ve become ashamed of our roots. Linguistic states, accelerated in the 60s and 70s, have made us look more like the EU than the US – a ‘khichri’ much harder to govern. Bollywood has further killed Hindi – the less said of the Hindi speaking skills (outside of the dubbing studio) of film stars the better. Bollywood anyway has always had a Hollywood (& also English) fixation. The singular Hindi standard (now pall)-bearer is Amitabh – who strides colossally across this firmament. Even cricketers seem to want to speak in English only. The only field where Hindi survives, even in Metros and big cities like Gurgaon, is Entertainment.
We’ve made the idea of a nation, India, more difficult, without a common language throughout the country. In fact we have just added more to regionalism over the years. Our language has also become coarser over the years – as we have ‘developed’. It is time to create a language called “Hindustani’ – an amalgam, with all the colloquial thrown in; and then taught as the National Language across the country. Let us declare a Hindustani Day….soon….to kick-start this Project.
Japan and China, Asian (non-‘white’) nations have become global leaders, but take great pride in their language, customs and culture. All foreigners have accepted this when dealing with them, and especially when visiting their countries – and even grudgingly admire them for it. The world admires those that admire themselves. We have, on the contrary, given up our core competence and competitiveness, in multiple areas (including sports), just to copy (please?) others - who would almost always be better in those areas than us. What kind of logic or grand strategy is this?
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