The British Raj has left us long back. The old adage should have
left us with the aged generation who has experience in the rule of injustice.
But, it looks like the Raj have laid a never ending seed of weeds. They have
ruled over our authority. Their superiority was expressed in every laws, acts
or policy. Those were the days where force occupation had to be done to do
unfair business with another country or nation. It is we who cracked our head,
twisted our tongue to learn the master language. English has become anonymous
with authority and superiority. It’s the master who brags out in English to
their hearts content. Indian as meek as we could be are driven timidly by this
language. The lower rung laborer or revolutionaries have tasted the bitterness
of sledge, rob in the neck or bullets. Equally the educated secretaries and
govt. functionaries were wiped with the sledge of English verbatim. They were
ordered, disciplined with words in spoken and written.
Turning the page to current scenario I have observed quite a lot
that this sense has not left us. As old habits often die hard, we have picked
it up in fashion this language of authority and superiority. This stain has
evolve and has remain relevance in our present society. Once I was flying in an
economy class from Delhi to Bangalore; the occupants in opposite row were
middle aged, discussing business in Hindi. Their voice sounded like the replica
of worn out generator whose voice sometime roars out loud and sometimes die
down which also annoyed the occupant behind them (not to mention the irritation
that caused me). The gentlemen (I call gentlemen for no reasonJ) behind them requested them if they
could reduce their tape. Initially the lady (one among the three)
responded what was the big deal but then heal broke loose as both the parties
started throwing arrow sharp words, double edge knife like words at each other.
The gentlemen made a consistence pitch while the other three took turn to pick
up sharp words and sentences to hit back to the opinion. The battle started in
Hindi and was fought in English in the language battle ground! Though I
did not actively participate in the battle, almost dozens of creepy words had
crossed my mind, which would have had come out of my mouth had I been involved
in the battle. The solution to the situation interestingly was a soft spoken
air hostess who meditated meekly in Hindi. Irony is that the flight was almost
empty but both parties refused to shift their seat which would have had been
possible through discussion or mediation. After all, it’s not about the
discomfort it is about chilling out with former master’s words/language.
Upper middle class, the urbanized class or the educated class of
our society has accepted English as a part of everyday life. Sending children
to English medium school was a craze even rural India. Though I am not
interested in analysing the good or the vice of this phenomenon; I am here
interested in understanding how it has played out with respect to the schemes I
have expressed above. In malls, trains, cinema halls, at home, children as
their nature tend to go wild and explore. So, in a population of millions and
always over crowded public spaces, how do parents control their children? I
have often heard parents initially explaining how to tame/teach to behave with
their wards. Like the revolutionaries of our Independent Nation, children
hardly grab their parent’s intention and their curiosities always drive them
the test of freedom. That is when parents open their last and all-time powerful
weapon which is rise their voce, stress on certain words (like nooooo…. Rahul..
Vicky etc..), enlarge their eyes wide and that’s when most children understand
out of fear that their parents actually mean it. It is true, the lovely and
always caring relationship between a parent and a child is fully expressed in
mother tongue. It is also true children could be confuse how same language or
words could be used either to express love and control. Thanks to the colonial
power who has left this token to fill the gap and help millions of parents
control their children and make millions of children feel that the same parent
who scold them in videshi still love them in desi way.
I hope this kind of notion of language and power/authority
relationship has open up interesting debate in various platform and will do the
same in our institution.
