PROUD OF YOUR KHICHDI.......?

The language that we now use to communicate with our fellow beings and express our thoughts and feelings can at best be called a khichdi mix of English, Hindi with a dash of vernacular carelessly thrown in. But if we are asked the simple question whether we actually know our language, the answer, I suppose, will be an unabashed no. We glibly blame it on our cosmopolitan upbringing; we take pride in saying that we speak the common man’s language which is easily understandable; we give examples of such other words which have come to be used and adopted in the course of time but do not strictly belong to that particular language, e.g., bazaar in English, bus in Hindi, ijjat colloquially used in Bengali taken from Urdu word izzat so and so forth.

Blatantly hyped and extensively used by our media (TV News, Serials, Chat Shows Reality Shows etc.) this mixture of languages has become our notional language. With the exception of a few like Mr. Bacchan who prefers to use unadulterated version of whichever language, Hindi or English, he chooses to speak in, most of the times, our ears are assaulted by this “mixed babble” which has become our colloquial dialect. We pick up what we hear. This dialect has also invaded journalism, literary works, broadcasts (FM) etc. AIR is an exception. But who tunes in to AIR nowadays?

In this context, I remember an anecdote - my father’s childhood friend whom we fondly called Jethu (Tauji), was perturbed when his son who was settled abroad wrote to him that his Bengali friend and his British wife would be calling upon him for dinner. Jethu was known to be a close fisted person and would count every penny before spending (he left a fortune for his grandchildren!). But this time he was not worried about money. His only concern was how to communicate with the lady and whether he would be able to understand her diction. Jethu was an extremely well read person with a penchant for the theatre and the most embarrassing habit of vocalizing his political views (generally anti-establishment), loudly, to the shock and chagrin of the audience at large. He spoke English fluently but with a strong Bengali accent.

Finally the guests arrived. The much dreaded dinner happened to be a peaceful event. The next day when we asked Jethu whether he could understand the lady’s accent. He gave an impish wink and said it was the other way round. It was the lady who found it difficult to understand Jethu’s much refined English expressions!

Another example: our family physician Dr Sengupta was an affable soul with a florid smile. He belonged to East Bengal and spoke the dialect of the region fluently. So did his wife, a simple, middle aged woman who basked in the glory of her grand children. One evening in one of the community gatherings, we almost fell off our chairs when the lady on request, went into raptures and recited lines from Shakespeare ex tempore in perfect English. Later we came to know that she was an English graduate from an esteemed institution of pre-independence time.

Simple people leading simple lives with a love of language!!

Some of my learned friends have pointed out that borrowing words from other languages is a common phenomenon world over and is a part of cultural intermingling which enriches and enhances vocabulary. Agreed! When we cook we too put in a number of ingredients to garnish the dishes but at the same time we know the taste and flavour of each of the masalas that we are putting in. Stretching the same example to this issue my humble submission will be that before preparing the assorted linguistic gourmet we should have enough knowledge of each of the lingual ingredients that we lavishly throw in so that if one day if we are told to prepare a simple, unadulterated version of daal chawal in one language, we should not cut a sorry figure.

My grandfather used to say that proficiency in one language automatically facilitates proficiency in other language(s) because the underlying nuances are the same. Instead of hiding our deficiencies in several languages (Hindi, English and Vernacular) under the garb of a cosmopolitan tongue, shouldn’t we brush up our knowledge (read language) a bit?

We are fashion savvy, net savvy, tech savvy, mobile savvy, computer savvy and so on and so forth; can’t we also be language savvy? Or is it too out dated a concept?

SHOW ME THE RULE

I hold a Citi Card (Visa) and have been using it regularly for almost past ten years. As such, I have not had any problem with the Card or with Citi Bank with regard to any of my transactions till recently. The story goes like this….

I had made a few purchases worth Rs. 2000/- on the card. The Statement against the said purchase was mailed to me on time. But due to various preoccupations, I missed the mail. The payment therefore could not be made on time. I realized this only after the receipt of the subsequent statement which was as it is of a hefty amount.

I decided to make the entire payment (outstanding as well as current) then and there without waiting for the due date which was somewhere in the middle of next month. However, while making out the cheque, I realized that the bank was charging me an interest @ 3.35% (40.2% annually) and a Service Tax @ 10.30% presumably on the default payment over and above the fixed late payment fees. But the amount reflecting towards these was exorbitant and did not fit into the calculation. On enquiry, I was told that the interest and Service Tax were charged on the current balance (the default as well as the current taken together).

I was appalled and sought to speak to higher authority. On being connected, I explained the problem. The girl on the other end informed that it was the policy of the Bank to charge the interest and Service Tax on late payment on the current balance as mentioned overleaf (ref. bill). I wanted to know whether the bank was charging the exorbitant interest and tax amount on the presumption that the customer would not be paying the current outstanding as well. I challenged the rule and told her that the Bank could not penalize a customer before the commission of the offence.

I had expected a prolonged debate on the issue but the girl acquiesced quite promptly and agreed to waive the interest and Service Tax on the current balance. But of course, I had to pay the same on the default amount. I agreed and the matter was settled.

This made me think. Had I not questioned the rationale behind the rule, I would have been taken for a ride. Also, every written rule is not law and cannot be enforced down the customer’s throat. Though, I am not preaching non compliance to rules, it is also a fact that we should not blindly follow a rule just because it is written under the heading “Terms and Conditions”. We should understand the logic and reason behind the rule. Perhaps certain rules are also made to intimidate the chronic errant customers.

Also, we, as customer, must also know how far we can challenge a rule or throw our weight around. Had I asked for a total waiver of late payment fees including the interest and the Service Tax, it would have been tantamount to taking advantage or asking for too much. Though, I suppose I could have, based on my flawless track record of ten years. But somehow I felt that I needed to pay some additional charge so that it would keep me on my toes to henceforth not to miss mail alerts and make payment on time