4. All content for this book is for
academic purposes only. No part
of this book may be reproduced
in any manner without
permission from the author.
Content, editing and design by
Pushpi Bagchi
Printed and bound in
Edinburgh College of Art.
02
6. Introduction
Earlier this year at the 79th All India Kannada
Sahitya Sammelan (All India Kannada Literary Conference) the attendees demanded that the Union
Government of India create a national policy that
would advocate regional languages and make it
compulsory for primary school children to be taught
in the ‘mother tongue’. This was in response to a
sentiment that many of the participants shared—
the influence and use of local languages (in this
particular case Kannada) was being lost due to the
predominance of English as the lingua franca (ND
Shiva Kumar, February 2013). In a country with over
twenty official languages and over a hundred unofficial ones (Timmons, 2012), linguistics, regionalism and politics are topics that evoke passionate
responses from most. In a globalised world being
bilingual is a necessity for many, and most contemporary Indians have the character trait of being multilingual; yet there is much debate over the issue of
loss of linguistic diversity.
One cannot discount the importance of learning
the English language. It can be considered as the
world’s second language as it “allows you to be part
of a global conversation” (Jay Walker, 2009). In India
competence in English leads to opportunities as it
is the official language of commerce (Joseph, 2011).
There are people like Mr. Chandra Bhan Prasad, an
Indian Dalit activist who believes that promoting
fluency in English will help liberate his people from
being at the bottom of India’s social caste system
(Tripti Lahiri, 2011). Which leads us to Indian English;
the adapted English language that is spoken
04
7. differently based on your geographic location—is
not the evolution of the spoken language inevitable
and necessary?
The aim of this project is to initiate a dialogue
on the issue of multilingualism and the apparent
loss of Indian vernacular culture by using graphic
design as a tool to reflect contemporary India’s
evolving cultural values. This report explores the
role of language as part of our cultural identity
and the significance of linguistic diversity in a fast
globalising world. The primary audience is contemporary, multilingual Indians who posses the
gift of tongues but also share the responsibility of
taking it forward to the next generation. The loss
of cultural diversity is a global concern and while
this research might be region specific, the issues
are wide ranging and of significance to many. The
study uses two main research techniques; primary
research as personal interviews of Indian students
in Edinburgh and secondary research of literary
reviews of articles, journals and talks that address
the issue. The interviews were conducted in an
informal manner, not unlike a discussion to put
the respondents at ease and engage in an active
dialogue. The report does not include details of the
studio practice done alongside this study due to
the limitation of the word count.
“The greatest indicator of the loss of cultural
diversity is language loss” (Wade Davis, 2003).
This study attempts to understand what it is that
we stand to lose and hopes to contribute to the
safeguarding of the vernacular.
05
8. “
Whether a Kannadiga
can speak good
Kannada or not isn’t
an evaluation of him
as a person. Him as a
person comes first—
languages are just
words.
Prasanna Kumar, PhD Student
University of Edinburgh
06
9. English spoken here
According to the constitution of India the country
does not have a national language. However, one
can confidently claim English as India’s unofficial
national language (Joseph, 2011). The best schools
in India teach in English and the best jobs require
fluency in the language. Institutes that teach
English are thriving and according to Sumanyu Satpathy; even broken English speaking skills are considered to be empowering with advertisements for
“Spoken/Broken English” classes (Satpathy, 2012).
He continues to claim that the growth of India’s
two most popular languages, English and Hindi in
the Indian education system and consequently the
culture will turn the country’s linguistic landscape
into a “depressingly monolingual
affair.
”
As mentioned earlier,
Mr. Chandra Bhan Prasad
believes that in a country
riddled with the social
stigma of caste barriers, English is “casteneutral” (Lahiri, 2010).
Figure 1: Pushpi Bagchi (2013)
Prasanna Kumar’s Portrait
[sketch].
10. In Raj Krishnan’s opinion, a Business student at the
University of Edinburgh giving English preference
is a step in the right direction as “it is necessary to
be a more global citizen” (Krishnan, 2013). However,
he doesn’t believe this is at the cost of losing our
traditional culture or linguistic diversity.
8
11. Language = Cultural asset
A few years ago the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology had released a fact by linguist Ken
Hail which stated that of the 6,000 languages currently spoken on earth, 3,000 aren’t spoken
by the children. This fact implies that the world’s
linguistic and therefore cultural diversity is going
to be halved over the span of a single generation (Borges, 2006). What do we lose with the
demise of a language? Borges continues his talk
by suggesting we lose a philosophy and knowledge
system as that is no longer passed on. According to
Jenal Mehta (an Irish citizen of Indian origin) apart
from knowledge, languages are also a cultural
asset and a commodity that can establish cultural
identity. Her ability to speak in Gujarati (her mother
tongue) and Hindi plays a significant role in establishing a connection to her Indian roots (Mehta,
2013). To help preserve a language, or ensure the
continuity of its use there has to be an emotional
connection to it.
Vani Sriranganayaki believes Indians won’t lose
touch with their mother tongues as it is deeply embedded in our familial values (Sriranganayaki, 2013).
It is often considered disrespectful to talk to elders
in the family, especially grand parents in a language
Figure 2: Pushpi Bagchi (2013)
Vani Sriranganayaki’s Portrait
[sketch].
09
13. other than the mother tongue. It is part of tradition. Khushi Mandalia on the other hand takes pride
in the fact that she can express herself in three
languages without having to think about it too much.
Her multilingualism is one of her biggest cultural
assets (Mandalia, 2013).
Figure 3: Pushpi Bagchi (2013)
Multinlingual signage [collage using
found images].
11
14. “
Language cannot
be legislated by an
academy...it emerges
from human minds
interacting with one
another—
slang, jargon...
.
Steven Pinker, 2005
12
15. Advocating language
The Indian Census asks for a first, second and
third language from each respondent. The 2001
census listed a 122 spoken languages in the
country, making multilingualism a presumption
(Timmons, 2012). Most Indian education boards
require students to be taught a second and often
third language along with the language of instruction from primary school which makes most
educated Indians bilingual at the very least. It
is not uncommon to find contemporary Indian
households where children speak in a different
language to each parent, another one with their
friends and English at school. Such examples can
be found in my family and among the students that
I interviewed. Shruti Chandak speaks Marwari (her
mother tongue) at home, she learned Sanskrit as a
third language in school and her mother made her
read religious texts in Sanskrit which familiarised
her with the language. Living in Maharashtra she
often speaks to her friends back home in Marathi
which is the local language there. She is also fluent
in Hindi as that was her second language at school
and of course English (Chandak, 2013). People like
Shruti are not uncommon as multilingualism is
inevitable in such a diverse country.
A medium where one can find fantastic real world
applications of multilingual methods of communication is Indian street graphics. Whether hand painted
signboards or embellished means of transport,
there are innumerable examples of multilingualism
seen in everyday communication. One can also
find ways in which English is adapted to suit the
13
16. vernacular (Figure 3). Instead of fostering such unexpected avenues of multilingual expression, we find
politicians in Karnataka legislating rules that require
all commercial institutions to have their signage
in Kannada, the official state language alongside
their English counterparts or pay a hefty fine (The
Times of India, 2008). Such laws do not help in
advocating the regional languages, instead they
often encourage acts of violence and vandalism by
Figure 4: Samosapedia (2012)
Screen shots from samosapedia.com
[online image].
14
18. self appointed protectors of the vernacular by giving
them liberty to deface signs in English and create
social tension (The Economist, 2012). It is the same
in the state of Maharashtra (Joseph, 2011). Other
than violence, such laws also have other effects, as
pointed out by Vani, regional magazines and publications that talk of preserving or protecting vernacular
languages are often perceived as fundamentalist (Sriranganayaki, 2013). The State Governments
appear to be failing in their attempt to help save the
vernacular and promote regional languages.
Figure 5: Pushpi Bagchi (2013)
Jenal Mehta’s Portrait [sketch].
16
19. “
People should be
taught to take pride
in their own language
and in the fact that
they can learn more
Indian languages—
because most people
in India know quite
a few languages...and
that’s not the case in
most places.
Jenal Mehta, MSc Business
University of Edinburgh
17
20. Considering the earlier research, some might
consider this as debasing languages. In his Ted
talk, John McWhorter discusses how texting is
considered by many as the fall of serious literature, especially among the youth. In his opinion
however this is simply not true as texting is a form
of speech and is not literature (McWhorter, 2013).
He terms texting as “fingered speech” which has
an emergent complexity and its own structure
which acts as an extension of a persons linguistic
repertoire. Mingling Indian languages in spoken
slang or otherwise is a similar concept and indicates an interesting alternate to the dominant use
of English.
Figure 6: Pushpi Bagchi (2013)
Khushi Mandalia’s Portrait [sketch].
18
21. This matter of culture
The variety of people that make up the Indian subcontinent bring together the influences and inspiration of many different cultures (Cooper, Gillow, 1996)
and this culture has been evolving and adapting to
change for hundreds of years. However, Indian
history is unique in the way that it has maintained
a sense of tradition while absorbing aspects of other
cultures during its numerous invasions and colonizations (Ypma, 1994). It appears that the only constant
is the continuos evolution of the culture and a sense
of unity amongst the vast diversity.
From the research undertaken,
it is clear that English is a
predominant language in
India. Whether this is at
the cost of the country’s linguistic diversity
is debatable. Contemporary Indians
are not going to
stop speaking their
mother tongue as its
deeply rooted in their
familial values and is
a source of comfort as
mentioned by most students interviewed (refer
appendix). However,
as Jenal mentioned, “
...
people should be taught
to take pride in their
own language
22. and take pride in the fact that they can learn more
Indian languages because most people in India
know quite a few...and that’s not the case in most
places” (Mehta, 2013).
This study has helped generate content for studio
work that aims to introduce the issue of multilingualism and linguistic diversity in contemporary
India and generate a dialogue on the topic of loss
and preservation of vernacular culture. While there
are no conclusive solutions it can be seen that the
issue is not the predominance of English or Hindi
in India, or for that matter
the world over
but that
23. of appreciating the value of culture and linguistic
diversity and encouraging its expression in new and
innovative formats. The ideal goal is to instil a sense
of pride, whether nationalistic or cultural regarding
this unique gift of tongues. The loss of culture is a
loss of knowledge and identity, and languages are a
commodity that can be freely used to express identity. Perhaps by allowing them to evolve and adapt
freely is their best method or preservation.
Figure 7: Pushpi Bagchi (2013)
Shruti Chandak’s Portrait
[sketch].
21
24. List of illustrations
Cover image: Bagchi, P (2013) Speaking in Tongues
[personal image].
Figure 1: Bagchi, P (2013) Prasanna Kumar’s Portrait
personal image].
Figure 2: Bagchi, P (2013) Vani Sriranganayaki’s
Portrait [personal image].
Figure 3: Bagchi, P (2013) Multinlingual Signage
[personal image].
Figure 4: Samosapedia (2012)
Screen shots from samosapedia.com
[online image] Available from: http://samosapedia.
com/.
Figure 5: Bagchi, P (2013) Jenal Mehta’s Portrait
[personal image].
Figure 6: Bagchi, P (2013) Khushi Mandalia’s Portrait
[personal image].
Figure 7: Bagchi, P (2013) Shruti Chandak’s Portrait
[personal image].
Figure 8: Bagchi, P (2013) Raj Krishnan’s Portrait
[personal image].
22
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Figure 8: Pushpi Bagchi (2013)
Raj Krishnan’s Portrait [sketch].
26
