India has no national language because the country has
too many languages. Apart from the officially recognised 22 languages are the
hundreds of regional languages and dialects. It would be preposterous to
imagine one particular language as the national language in such a situation.
That is why the visionary leaders of Independent India decided upon a
three-language policy for most purposes: Hindi, English, and the local
language.
The other day two pranksters from the Hindi belt landed in Bengaluru airport wearing T-shirts declaring Hindi as the national language. They posted a picture on X and it evoked angry responses from a lot of Indians who don’t speak Hindi.
The worthiness of Hindi to be India’s
national language was debated umpteen times and there is nothing new to add to
all that verbiage. Yet it seems a reminder is in good place now for the likes
of the above puerile young men.
Language is a
power-tool.
One of the first things done by colonisers and conquerors is to impose their
language on the vanquished people. Germany did that to the people of Alsace and
Lorraine, for example, when Otto von Bismark annexed those provinces from
France. In a story set during that time, the author Alphonse Daudet makes a
character who is a French teacher say: “When a people are enslaved, as long as
they hold fast to their language, it is as if they had the key to their prison.”
Imposing your
language on a people is tantamount to putting those people in prison. This is what the above
imprudent youngsters should understand first of all. Language has historically
been used as a tool for asserting dominance. The present rulers in Delhi have
too many ulterior motives and one of them is to impose Hindi on the entire
country. Like all the other motives of these leaders, this one will do no good to
the country. It will do a lot of harm, on the contrary.
A language is
part of a culture. When you impose your language on a people, you are
jettisoning their culture itself. You are reshaping them after your image.
Because you think you, your culture and language, are superior. This
superiority is sheer fiction in most cases. Flimsy fantasy of some inflated and
vainglorious egos.
A language carries certain economic and political baggage with it. A dominant language can streamline
governance, trade, and communication to the advantage of the people to whom it
really belongs. Imagine a Tamil candidate competing with another from a Hindi state
in a civil service exam conducted in Hindi, “the national language.” What
chance will the Tamil candidate ever have of becoming a bureaucrat in his
country? This is exactly the deviousness of the mission being worked out by the
present Delhi dispensation. You can usurp power from its rightful owners using
language.
In Shakespeare’s play The
Tempest, Caliban, the native of the island colonised by the European
protagonist, tells the protagonist, “You taught me your language and my
advantage now is that I can curse you in that language.” [I have modernised
Shakespeare’s idiom.] Caliban subverted the very purpose for which Prospero,
the coloniser-protagonist, taught him the language. Instead of submitting
himself to Prospero’s power, Caliban used Prospero’s language to curse him. Caliban
used the imposed language creatively and defiantly. He used his oppressor’s
weapon as his own means of resistance.
Caliban is not an ideal motif for a
person oppressed by a political system because of his lack of refinement. I
cited his example here precisely because the wielders of power in the North and
their acolytes seem to view people from other parts of India quite as Prospero
viewed Caliban.
As Prospero viewed Caliban, Modiji
came after the recent Wayanad [Kerala] catastrophe and flew over the despoiled
region like an actor being filmed. Months have passed and the victims have
received absolutely no aid from Modiji’s government. “We are part of India too,”
Kerala’s Chief Minister reminds Modiji time and again, the latest
being today.
We are part of the country. When any people of a country have to make statements like that, you know there’s something seriously wrong. More wrong than mere imposition of a language.
 |
| Modiji as disaster-tourist in Wayanad |
I agree to the comment 'language is powerful tool'. Now my current thoughts are on , what if there was a national language, how miserable would it have been.
ReplyDeleteIf any language brought concrete benefits to people, they would master it eagerly, as we have done with English.
DeleteI never thought of language like that. But it's true. An official language can have power. India's "official language" reminds me of the "official language" of the Olympics a bit.
ReplyDeleteYes, Olympics has a three-language system. The system is working pretty well in India too. Problems crop up when someone wants to change the system for seflish motives.
DeleteHari Om
ReplyDeleteFor commercial convenience, one language makes sense... but, of course, it will always be the dominant/ruling culture who gets to decide what that language might be. English for example. It began on Britain's shores when those who termed themselves English attempted to wipe out the Welsh and Gaelic languages and even now are disdainful of heavy local dialects... then they got around the world. English, French and Spanish... by the end of this century, all may be expected to get by in Mandarin... yes, language is power. YAM xx
Oh, yes, Mandarin is looming too large over the horizon.
DeleteWill Hindi do that to India? I doubt though the possibility is not far. Most labourers in Kerala now are from the North, Hindi-speakers. They learn Malayalam, though, because the Malayalis don't care to learn Hindi! Power structure, again.
No national language is a detriment to nationalism and that is what the present rulers want to promote and wipe out diversity. Fortunately we still have strong dissenters.
ReplyDeleteYamini has given ample examples form history for this problem. Imposition of any language on a people is certainly not a good sign. Yes, we have strong dissenters. I'm thankful to Tamil Nadu, particularly.
DeleteYou've made such an insightful and thought-provoking commentary here. Language is not just a tool for communication; it holds immense power, and its imposition can reflect deeper political agendas. The point you raise about how language is historically used as a tool for asserting dominance is particularly striking. It’s a reminder that the push to impose one language on such a diverse nation like India could have far-reaching consequences, not just for communication, but for the identity and culture of the people who don't speak it. The example from Shakespeare’s *The Tempest* is brilliant—it's a poignant reminder that language can be used as both a tool of oppression and resistance. How is Saturday going? Read my new post. Thank you. (https://www.melodyjacob.com/2024/11/holiday-glam-budget-christmas-outfit-ideas.html)
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you'd love to say more about Caliban. I'll wait. In the meanwhile, I'm flying to your space. 😊
DeleteLanguage is our ability to connect with each other. Hindi, English and local and personal, either is good. Why do you know demons to remind you to preserve the culture?
ReplyDeleteWhat's happening in Modiji India is disconnecting, not connecting. That's the problem.
DeleteAn extremely thought provoking post.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Delete