There are always things each one of us takes for granted. What those may be, vary. I, for one, have taken my communication and language skills as an integral part of me for the last two decades, which is what drives me to share this piece with you…
The queen’s language might as well have been my mother tongue, and I wouldn’t bat an eyelid, but college has made me meet people who through no fault of theirs are often criticized for their lack of it.
Does having an English medium education all through your life make you any better qualified or any better suited to face life? How come in India our own mother tongue is so badly treated that those who hail from Hindi medium backgrounds are made to feel inferior and thus ignored, left behind and unknowingly chastised? I know this because I’ve seen it. And it doesn’t make me feel any better to realize that initially I’d reacted with incredulous amusement and horror. Blame it on my south Delhi hangover!
Today I write this because something broke my heart. A classmate, who I’d seen carrying a dictionary and a ready reference English-Hindi translation set in the first few months, was asked to explain the term inventory. Now considering it’s not a very good term to explain in terms of management, the kid fumbled and stumbled and our teacher lost his cool! He blasted him off saying preposterous things like that word forms basic English and how could a person who’d qualified this far, not know. Not know? Good lord! It just pained to see that person bear the humiliation in public.
Teachers are meant to be an understanding tool to the knowledge we aspire to gain. They are our guides, our mentors and often our philosophers…how then can they be, albeit unconsciously, so heartless?
If you wish see this, come watch a viva-voce of any of us. If you’ve ever stumbled, ever felt at a loss of words you’d know what I mean. And to think of those for whom the queen’s language is just a big barrier…
