Anglicizing Urdu
The other day I was watching this morning show “Meena Bazaar” on PTV (yes, aapka apna pakistan television). The idea of show is good (strongly impressed by the other such shows running on private channels though). Execution was good but the thing that mars the whole effect is to be very F.O.R.M.A.L in all mighty sense.
In my opinion, you can remain in your limits of decency and manners yet you can be informal. Khair, that’s not what I’m thinking about right now. The presenter of that show was talking about the latest trends in our lingua franca. She was of the opinion that the language evolve and as a result it absorbs the new trends in communication. The lakhnawi aap-janaab urdu’s gone and the new eng/urdu composition is inevitable. Who knows if in few more decades down the lane the urdu we studied in our schools will vanish too.
Though rationally speaking it can be true. Emotionally I felt stabbed at this. Ironically such are the ways now. Gone are the days when we used to actually converse in true language … its an era of artful lingual disguise. If I’m a Punjabi, not ashamed, I’m hesitant to converse in my mother tongue when in public.
By the way, in this new era if you are not using 70% english in your statements … probably you’ll fall in other person’s oh-so-urdu-medium-list. Which should not be of any value but it is.
I salute the ever-growing complex knit of status-consciousness and media largely for giving birth to this parasite. A parasite that has already started maligning our roots.
And that’s not funny at all. I’m a victim of it as well but at least I can’t act oh-god-I-can’t-understand-this-kinda-urdu. Get a life.
Few days back a discussion was taking place in my office/department … ironically everyone has studied here yet they felt alienated to simple urdu words. I felt disgusted in my own self. Why are we treating our language like this? If Germans and french and rest of the Europe would remain adamant on using their languages, refusing english, then we can at least take some steps to master our own tongue, why can’t we? What are we ashamed of??
Dr. Rauf Parekh wrote a very interesting article in Dawn couple of months back about killing of Urdu on PTV … in response to which a letter was published that sent me ROFLing but the thoughts that rush in laters were not too light.
Sharing with you too :)
Now I know why they called Urdu ‘hamarey ghar ki laundi’ (our very own maid servant) – and how she was treated.
Some readers will recall the translation of Mirza Ghalib’s verse into English that made the round in Karachi University many years ago: Thhi khabar garm ke Ghalib ke urenge purze;/dekhney hum bhi gaye thhe pe tamasha na huwa.
This couplet was translated into English thus: “News was hot that the spare parts of Ghalib will fly; I also went to see but the show was postponed!”
Or Dagh Dehlavi’s line ‘Hazrat-e-Dagh jahan baith gaye baith gaye’ was translated as: “Mr Spot where sat where sat!”
So
Love Thy Language Please. Don’t torment it considering urdu as Ghar ki Laundi.
Ironic, I’m writing this in English!
and u wrote this post on kareeb kareeb SARHAY du :P
March 27th, 2008 at 3:40 pmUrdu is for primitives. English: for modern people. :P
March 27th, 2008 at 4:46 pmwe as a nation r so impressed (read suppressed) by the west that we cant let go the impressions of farangis from our daily lives…and we r divided into so many factions that we r everything but Pakistani…as a result we can speak anything but Urdu…
March 27th, 2008 at 5:16 pmanother thing is that urdu is the last thing we want to read during school…reading literature and other stuff is out of question…reading is the very effective way to gain command in a language…which we dont…writing is a good way to learn the pronunciation…we hardly write a word a day…either roman urdu or english is used…
unfortunately the future looks oblique :(
Its more a case of being under the influence of the WEST than a case of our language evolving. I agree PTV, of all the channels, should strive a little harder to promote URDU but sadly the new generation has already lost touch with true and SAQEEL urdu.
March 27th, 2008 at 6:49 pmI write in English, for having been educated in schools where English was the medium of instruction, it is the only language I can write properly in.
However, Punjabi is my mother tongue and I would rather converse in Punjabi, in private as well as in public, with any one who understands the language.
Urdu is such a lovely language too and it’s such a shame that it’s being treated the way it is, with English and even Hindi words creeping in all the time.
March 27th, 2008 at 7:02 pmurdu zinda baad
March 27th, 2008 at 7:57 pmAnd we are doing NOTHING to improve its quality and without English touch in our conversation we arent welcomed and labelled ”Urdu medium class”.
March 27th, 2008 at 8:55 pmAsma Baji, in my opinion app na “Akhbar-e-Jahan” mein articles likhna shuru kardain :), seriously you put so much effort in every post of your blog (specially when they are subject oriented) kay bus la-jawab kardain ti hain app :)
March 28th, 2008 at 6:43 amWith this post app ko bohot “pazeerai” hasil ho rahi hai, I wish Mirza Ghalib, Mir Taqi Mir, Mir Dard and other prominent personalities of urdu have access to internet in heaven and are viewing your blog :P , they must be so proud of you :)
March 28th, 2008 at 6:49 amyes urdu is lost.. mothers wanting their kids to be good at english is a fact you can’t ignore anymore.. its just about value.. everyone wants a valuable item in their assets.. we can make urdu come back.. by creating literary masterpieces which are so good that other language speakers come and translate our urdu stuff into their own… just my rapid and unstructured 2.5 cents.. oh i mean paisas! ;)
March 28th, 2008 at 8:19 amas far as absorbing the words of other languages is concerned, i think its good for the language…as the language itself is formed by the mingling of the soldiers of different origins…persian, turkish, arabic, sanskrit and even portuguese…so whats wrong if some english words a fusing in…who knows in the third millennium it’ll replace english as the international language :)
March 28th, 2008 at 11:55 amI think Daagh wrongly said:
March 28th, 2008 at 7:36 pmاردو ہے جس کا نام اسے جانتے ہیں داغ
اگر داغ زندہ ہوتے تو اپنے کہے پر شرمندہ ہوتے۔ یقیناً اردو ایک خوبصورت زبان ہے لیکن مجھے کہنے دیں کہ اس کے بولنے والے ہرگز خوبصورت نہیں، تبھی انہوں نے زبان کا یہ حشر کردیا ہے۔ دوسری طرف ہندوستان میں اردو کی نقل ہندی خوب پھل پھول رہی ہے۔
The whole problem lies with the fact that our media is strongly promoting this. I switch on any channel and I find a ‘modern, cool’ man/woman/boy/girl sitting on a stool(mostly) chapping on about something in English and trying make his accent sound like an American or British one. To me, these sort of people are a miniature part of our society. So why are they being pushed into the face of the vast and silent majority? Because of its silence!
March 28th, 2008 at 11:48 pmAnd adding to this problem is the versatility of Urdu to adopt the word of any language. Apart from these things, “jo lutf khalis Urdu bolnay mein hai woh kisi aur zabaan mein nahin.”
In China English is taught as a 3rd language not even a second one, in France people lift their eyebrows if they see u speaking English! Why are we running after US n UK where The West means the whole WEST not just these 2 states.. Nice Post..
March 29th, 2008 at 12:10 ama thought-provoking post indeed.. I think it starts way back.. our nation sure gained “independence” from the British rule but were left poisoned with an inferiority complex that they make sure passes on to all forthcoming generations - “english” is better, “gora” is better..
March 29th, 2008 at 11:04 amI’m left wondering what we as individuals can do to make a difference.. ideas?
Granted, that the media has been pushing this language fad into our society, but I think that the internet has been a much larger cause. Even people who prefer to speak Urdu in person find it more comfortable ‘typing’ in English.
What really ticks me off (I searched for this euphemism for quite some time ;)) is when people pretend not to know our own language, and actually ENJOY not knowing it!
March 29th, 2008 at 5:34 pmJinnah knew no Urdu. He was very weak in it and the only word he knew was ‘Azadi’. He preferred English and was quoted once saying “There’s no milk and honey in Urdu”. :P
March 30th, 2008 at 12:04 amwoohoo, I ‘ve to reply to all these good GOD - let me take a deep breath :)
March 30th, 2008 at 9:06 pmAsma Baji plz don’t even think about a deep breath, let alone taking it; now don’t tell me you forgot that you are on a diet :P
April 1st, 2008 at 3:01 amok bit by bit :)
nahi hawaa bechari nay kiya karna hay, mudassir :P
April 3rd, 2008 at 2:48 pmFariha :)
True Pakistani Yup its a prevalent thought … I may share it too at times :(
fAr stAr Exactly my point. You won’t find so many who have actually read urdu literature at least from new generation :\ Parents are usually not supportive either. It does - God help and we learn!!
Raza PTV is first trying her (?) hands on Glamor and gloss which means total negation of our own cultural … let them dance on that beat for a while - they care not :(
Sidhusaaheb Rightly so. We are taught urdu here as well. Though it’s a useless subject for many =\
Hani :-)
aashley exactly … and we are so ashamed of ever hearing urdu-mediums … this partition needs to be straightened out … if any govt. or policy makers would do that EVER.
April 3rd, 2008 at 2:59 pmI’d recommend all to watch/listen to this :)
April 3rd, 2008 at 4:14 pmMudasir Abb I’m not that bad kay akhbar e jahan may likhoon ..tauba tuba :P It reminds me only of those idiotic filmy gossips :S
And I didnt put any effort into it … if I had a listener here nearby … I may have said all this to him/her :P
Kamran We DO have literary pieces … but this urdu-complex-race is letting all that go in waste :S Urdu’s a complex generator in our society :(
fAr stAr but the fusion will wipe our language :( In this way of thinking the whole world was one some time in history … we should break up everything :S as the flow goes?
Sajid But there are still some people who are striving for this cause … and why can’t we be the promoters of it as well? :)
SAWJ Very well said … whatever teh class it be I havent seen anyone sleeping with false eyelashes and full make up ON ever :P Sigh … hope this glam and gloss goes down fast :)
Nikki Our world revolves around these two countries … abaa jaan jo kahain :)
mayG We are not as much of individuals as we think. In this present age … we can influence people more easily. Why not take one habit and stay firm that we won’t ever adopt the wrong path in this. Why can’t we teach morale and values to our children … we have so many powers yet we think we are individuals and always end up on thinking … what can I do alone :( Self -analysis and rectification :)
Absar Exactly … they take pride in saying OMG whats that word .. urdu is so funny .. get a life people … conused desis X-(
true Pakistani :)
Its not about knowing or not knowing … its more about complexes to run miles away from urdu … coz it’s so old fashioned …!
April 7th, 2008 at 1:53 am