Say it Right

Last evening I was watching an Australian channel with my family. The episode was about an Australia-settled Indian. She talked about her life in Australia and also about her participation in the Christmas parade. Somewhere toward the end of the episode my father remarked “Her vocabulary is good but her grammar is very poor.” My sister wasn’t too happy either – “She speaks weirdly!” referring to her accent. This got me thinking– "We are so bloody critical of our countrymen." We are not an English speaking country and I don’t see why it is important that we know the language to the T.


The Germans, the Japanese, the Italians, the Chinese, the Mexicans, the French (the list doesn’t end) have their own glitches when speaking the English language. But we Indians are very accepting of their goof ups. In most cases we find their accent sexy and their speech flattering. But if an Indian dare goof up, he is bound to be the butt of all jokes. (No wonder we are a bunch of insecure fools.)


Anyway, I put these points forth and argued fiercely with my dad. Mum was on my side. But later, dad said something that forced me to switch sides. He said that when a French man talks, he’s more interested in expressing himself so, he concentrates on what he says. But when an Indian talks, he focuses on how well he is speaking it. Believe me, I couldn’t agree more. I remember having met two Germans, who knew just enough English to get their work done. They initiated every conversation in their thick German accent and were very entertaining guests. The best part was to see them so comfortable in their own skin. On the other hand, a suburban Mumbai lad would be really worried if he had to speak in English for as less as two minutes in front of a South Mumbai crowd. Yes, he would indeed focus on how he is speaking it.


It is not uncommon to observe ourselves, our friends, our colleagues trying to get the accent right or get the pronunciation right or trying to use the right words when constructing a sentence. If a person deviates from the more commonly known pronunciation, we are quick to point it out– “What’s with the accent?” Each time a word flows out of an Indian’s mouth, it sounds different. Sometimes it sounds American, sometimes it sounds British, and the smart asses like the authentic French pronunciations. For instance, a word as simple as “restaurant” has umpteen peculiar pronunciations in the Indian social circle. Naturally, next time I use it, I’ll be thinking to myself “Did I say it right?”


The confusion explains an Indian’s obsession with foreign accents. The good part, however, is that a foreign accent (of an English speaking country) standardizes the pronunciations and stabilizes our language. So, I guess, you need not be too hard on people who walk in with an accent. Although, very often they walk in with an accent so unusual that it’s impossible to trace it back to the place they returned from. In such cases, going abroad has only added to the language confusion.


One Indian criticizing another Indian’s English speaking skills is typical Indian. It’s like arguing over something that is not ours to begin with. In my opinion, we speak the “Indian English” and it is not something to be ashamed of. The goal of a conversation is not to get the language right but to get the message across. We are not short of well spoken men who are an insult to communication. But yes, we are short of not-so-well-spoken men who believe they can pull a conversation through.