I love English. It has been since childhood, when my mother started talking to me in English. In English only. His language was not English. It was tame. Yes, Tamizh, Tamil or Tamil or Tamil or No Tamil, Tamizh. Tamizh is the language of the province of which Chennai is the main city, ie Tamizh nada. In the English-speaking provinces of India, the name of that language has become popular with ‘Tamil’. There is no grave mistake in calling Tamizh Tamil, but the correct pronunciation is Tamizh. This ‘Jh’ is somewhat difficult to say, but it is better to understand it and say it in the correct pronunciation. Equally, like calling English as English and not English or English.
So, my mother (whose name was Lakshmi) was Tamizha speaking. But with great joy and passion, he learned to speak, write and love English and found a wonderful mastery over that language. His father was Chakravarti Rajagopalacharya, who beautifully adapted the Ramayana into the original tamizha. Daughter Lakshmi then translated that version into English with the title Dasharatha-Nandan Shriram. The same Lakshmi (whose name probably should have been Saraswati) taught English to me and my sister and my brothers. Language as well as culture. For example, he said one day- ‘Gopu, there is a difference between ‘come’, ‘come’ and ‘aay’, isn’t it? You will not say ‘come’ to the elders, nor ‘come’. You will say, ‘Come on’. There is also a word beyond ‘come’, will come. If you say ‘come’, nothing will go wrong, but if you say ‘come’, you will show a feeling beyond courtesy, of sanskar.
Fortunately, the English teachers I found in school (Barakhamba Road, New Delhi) were of the same quality – Punyashloka Ved Vyas ji and Vishnudutt ji. It brought me closer to English. He was a wonderful teacher. It is normal to complete the syllabus, which every teacher does, but it is something else to sprout a love for the lesson. This he did.
In memory of the gift of knowledge of a mother whose mother tongue was not English but Tamizh, and who taught me English before teaching me Tamizh, today I say that English is a cultured language. Whose mother tongue is not English, in their mind, heart, would we like to see attachment towards English speaking English or resentment? Wouldn’t we want that there should be respect, affection and attraction in them for English language, for literature, for litterateurs?
‘English is the only national language of India!’ It is not only unfair but also inappropriate to say this in a multilingual nation like India. Those who are familiar with the Constitution know that our state languages, including English, are among the languages included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. In the aggressive statement ‘Who will not speak English, he will lose citizenship’, there is no politeness of English, not the tone of Awadhi, not the melody of Brajbhasha. There is no humor of Bihari couplets, no word-play of Raskhan, no great heart of Mahadevi, no thought of Nirala, no behavior of Premchand, no seriousness of Jainendra. There is no pink heart of Jawaharlal Nehru, no affectionate hand of Lal Bahadur Shastri, no generosity of Atal ji.
There is public power in English, don’t cast it in the sand of riots. There is also a place named Dakshin in India. Do not forget this we English speakers. Poet Pradeep was never forgotten. That’s why he gave immortal words to the song of Lata Mangeshkar, who is a Gorkha or a madrasi. Let us not separate the body of India from the mind of India. Our poet Rabindranath Tagore has sung – Jana Gana Mana. Let us remember that mind at all times.
And English is not bad in that south. no way. There is an image of ‘English-Niti’ in the South – English is being implanted. The English world can say that the purpose of making allegations is not anybody’s. If not, then why this image? How? Who removes that image and how? The assurance of Jawaharlal Nehru and then of Lal Bahadur Shastri seemed credible to the religious world. The fear of accusation kept going. English was secondarily spoken and heard freely in the South. No thrust, no coercion, no competition. This situation should not be changed, but it should be given more strength.
There are many English speakers who say that English is the national language. There are few English speakers who say that India is an ocean of languages; Learn South English, Learn North South languages. Tamizh epic Tirukkural is available in English. How many English speakers are there, who tried to read it and take advantage of its knowledge? Have you tried to know whether Kannada Mahavakyas of Basava will be available in English or not? Are Sree Narayana Guru’s Malayali narration and Tyagaraja’s Telugu kirtana translated into English? English-policy should be committed not only for the expansion of English, but for the expansion of the inner boundaries of the English world, to remove its narrowness. And to see that the anti-colonial mentality of other Indian languages could never come to the lovers of that gentle language.
The nation is connected by the messages contained in the languages, not by the languages. We will find messages in English or in any Indian language that bring harmony to the joint family of India, and also those that bring separation in that family. English speakers of India are definitely in majority. English becoming the highest ‘link’ language of India, it is a natural feeling in the English world. To make English the most loved language of India, it should be a self-righteous aim of the English world. The contribution of English in the love of the nation is certainly big. If the contribution of the nation is to be brought in the love of English, then English has to learn to love other languages and other languages, not with itself.
(These are the author’s own views)