PREPONDERANCE OF HINGLISH IN CONTEMPORARY

CINEMA

Shruti Sangam M.A 3 rd

Sem. Dept. of English, Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya,

Bilaspur (C.G) Email:

chinkschips@gmail.com

Languages and cultures are always in a state of flux;

changing and evolving through time. As such they are akin to

identities that undergo various changes throughout life.

English and Hindi are also two languages or selves, with their

own unique identities. The union of these two selves engenders

a young sapling that is further nourished and nurtured by its

parent body. This cyclic process of the intermingling of the

two things into one as its result takes place not only in

respect of human beings but also in terms of languages,

cultures and many other things. In other words, the Hinglish

language is a hybrid product of the two totally different

varieties (Hindi and English) of the same species (language)

that is “Hindi” and “English”.

The term “HINGLISH” is basically the blending of the two

completely different languages that is “Hindi” and “English”.

Hindi is spoken in India and is also accorded the status of

being the national language. In a similar manner English was

the language belonging to the Britishers. But before

independence when Indians were colonized by the British,

English became one of the dominating languages in the country.

Hinglish is a totally new amalgam of the two languages (Hindi

and English) which in the forthcoming time will grow rapidly

all over the world as it is gaining currency among the

majority of people. Hinglish language is nowadays not only

used in metropolitan cities but is gradually spreading its

influence from urban and semi urban places to even rural and

remote areas, through mobile phones, internet, television,

etc.

In today’s daily conversations, this newly born Hinglish

language has become very popular. Like in the morning a wife

says to her husband “apki chai table pe rakhi hai”, (your tea

is kept on the table). In this very small Hindi sentence also,

we find an English word being incorporated into it. Because

the pure Hindi word ‘maze’ is not used by many people. This is

because many people are not familiar with the pure Hindi

words. In the same way if a person who is a foreigner when

comes to India asks his friend “where is the rickshaw gadi?”

Here the whole sentence is English but the word gadi is a

Hindi word. Thus, we can say that there is the intermingling

of not only English words in Hindi sentences but also Hindi

words into English sentences. This is said to be the Hinglish

language in today’s scenario.

Hinglish language is used in a number of fields like

means of mass entertainment, which in other terms is called

the Popular Culture. According to Scott Church, an adjunct

professor in the Department of Communications:

Popular Culture is obsessed with making something

new out of its abundance of old materials plus

living in an age where films is over a century old

and rock music is approaching 60. So, it endlessly

recycles and repackages itself. (Pop Culture: a

thing of the past by Maddy Fitzgerald, Jan 04, 2012,

2:44 pm)

In other words the popular culture includes music, cinema

and mass media, advertisements, etc. Although education is not

a part of the popular culture but still there are schools and

colleges where the students are taught by the teachers using

the Hinglish language to convey their message directly to the

students, like the teacher scolding the whole class “tum log

aaj kal apne studies pe bilkul bhi concentrate nai karte ho.”

Even in literature like some famous novels of Shobhaa De,

Chetan Bhagat, Salman Rushdie, and other contemporary writers

there is an exemplary use of Hinglish language and

expressions. Like in Chetan Bhagat’s famous novel “2 States-

the Story of my Marriage” a story about a boy called Krish

and a girl Ananya who come from two different states of India

that is Punjab and Tamil Nadu is discussed along with the

obstacles that they had to overcome to get married. The

language that they use reflects the contemporary trend of

using Hinglish; “I ordered paneer pao-bhaji with extra butter

and a lassi on the side.” (Bhagat 44). So here we find the use

of Hinglish language. It is said that Devyani Chaubal, one of

the famous columnist was the first to author to use Hinglish

in her work. There are a number of novels written in Hinglish

today. In serials like Bade Acche Lagte Hai we find the characters

conversing in the fusion language of Hindi and English or

Hinglish. There are advertisements like Pepsi’s 1998 slogan

“Yeh Dil Mange More!” “No idea. Then get Idea”, which sheds a

focus light on the changing trend of language use. In the year

2003, a flow of Hinglish pop songs became very popular like Tu

Hai Wohi by DJ Aqeel which became very successful. In the long

run of the coming years, a number of Hinglish songs had taken

birth to take its first breath in the world contemporary

cinema like, “Give me some Sunshine” from the movie 3 Idiots. The

lyrics of this song best exemplifies the use of the hybrid

language:

“Saari umar hum mar-mar ke ji liye,

Ab kuch pal to hume jeene do jeene

do……………

Give me some sunshine, give me some

rain

Give me another chance, I wanna grow up

once again.” (Youtube clip)

Again there are a number of songs like, “It’s the time to

disco” from the movie Kal Ho Na Ho, “Desi Girl” from Dostana and

many more which are embedded with Hinglish language. There

some regional songs also which reveals the way English has

crept within the native language and has overcast its shadow

like Hinglish. Like “Kolaveri di” by the famous south Indian

actor Dhanush that best represents the mixture of Tamil and

English with the typical native accent.

“ Why this Kolaveri- kolaveri-

kolaveri di?”

……………………………….

Kaila glassa…….. wonly English. (Youtube

clip)

English, the Queen’s language is gradually becoming the

Queen amongst languages and a day will come when Hinglish will

hold the whole world in its hands. English language came to

India when the Britishers colonized India. For the

nationalists, English was and still is a reminder of India’s

colonial past and for many critics of the language, it

represents the dominance of the Western world on the languages

and cultures of the East. The reason behind most of the

criticisms centred on the language is - firstly that the

national and other regional languages will be eclipsed by the

overpowering influence of English language, and secondly the

reason behind the frightening image of English is due to the

fact that most find it difficult to learn and pronounce. But

as time passed by people became aware of the importance of the

language and its prospects in the future. This language proved

to be a better means of communication among the people of

different states and different countries. Like in India when

people move towards the southern side of the country, it is

difficult for them to express their thoughts and ideas. This

is because Hindi serves to be the national language of India

but there are many people who are still not familiar with this

language. Here English plays an important role for

communication purposes. Even in the field of education also,

all the books of technical studies are published in English.

The world is developing rapidly in the field of science and

technology and all the scientific inventions from the other

countries cannot reach India through any other language except

English. There are many call centers which require qualified

learned people in English for the post of BPOs so that they

can have communication with customers from all over the world.

Even China is now making its people learn the English language

so that it can hold the top most position amidst other

countries. English is also the language of computers that help

to communicate with different people around the world through

Internet, Orkut, Face book, Emails, etc. English is an

important requirement in most government and private jobs. The

English language has become easier to learn because a large

number of sources are available nowadays like books, spoken

English classes, etc.

Even in the field of politics the English language has

become very much convenient to use. According to Dr. D.N.

Khandelwal’s remark in the Hindi newspaper Navbharata, the

language of the common people is like a flowing river wherein

words from other languages come and blend in it like the

various little streams and rivulets. If the flow of the river

is checked, the water will stagnate and turn dirty. The free

flowing river liker popularity of a people’s language should

always welcome words from other languages.

In politics many of the ministers have said that using

pure Hindi or any other languages used by the native people

may be difficult to express one’s thoughts to others and it

will also be difficult for others to understand what the

person is speaking. If for instance a minister speaks of the

word cigarette, then in Hindi the term used will be

“swetangini dhrumpan dandika”. This is quite difficult for

others to understand. Again the rail signal is called “loh

path gamini gamnagman loh pattika” in Hindi which is a

difficult term for the people to understand. Many of the

people are not aware of these terms so Hinglish language is

said to be used instead of using either pure Hindi or English

language.

The world of movies is the most popular means of

entertainment. Every nation or region has its own movie

industry like the American film industry, Hollywood; the

Indian film industry, Bollywood and the various regional film

industries of India like the Bengali film industry, Tollywood.

Bollywood basically refers to Hindi cinema, the biggest Indian

film industry which is situated in Bombay. The Bollywood

industry was greatly inspired by the Tollywood industry as it

originated in the 1970s and gradually the Bollywood industry

became the world’s largest film producer.

During the colonial period, English was the language of

the urban elites and Hindi was much more predominant for the

masses. The movies made during the time were mostly influenced

from the great epics like The Mahabharata and The Ramayana.

Traditional source of the Natya Veda - The Natyashastra by

Bharatmuni provided an inspiration for the Indians movies and

helped them to progress gradually. In 1913 Raja Harischandra was

made by Dada Saheb Phalke which is considered to be the first

silent film made in India. This movie was made on the myth

involving the legendary king Harishchandra, who was a very

noble king as he had sacrificed not only his kingdom but also

his wife and children to keep his promise. This movie is said

to be the first step that the Indian film industry took to

enter into the world of movies. This movie proved to be a

great success. In those times there were no female characters

so the males had to dress up themselves into females. After

this in 1931 the first Indian film with sound, Alam Ara was made

by Ardeshir Irani, which was a great commercial success. In

1937 Ardeshir Irani made the first colour film in Hindi Kisan

Kanya.

After India’s independence, the period between 1940s-

1960s was considered by the film historians as the “Golden

Age” of Hindi cinema. There were some movies which were based

on the working class people in urban areas like Guru Dutt’s

film Kagaz ke Phool (1959), and Raj Kapoor’s film Awara (1951).

Then some movies were based on epics like Mughal-e-Azam (1960)

and Mehboob Khan’s Mother India (1957). In movies of early

seventy’s the language used was pure hindi like the movie

Anand, where Rajesh Khanna playing the character as Anand

said:

“ Zindagi aur maut upar wale ke haath mein

hai, jahapanah,

Use na aap badal sakte hain na main.”

(Youtube clip)

Gradually in the late 1960s and1970s the language used

in movies of Rajesh Khanna, Dharmendra, Rajkumar, Asha Parekh,

Hema Malina, Jaya Bachchan, etc. was a bit different from the

pure Hindi used in the earlier movies. Finally after 1990s

movies like Diwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995), Hum Apke Hain Kaun

(1994), Lagaan (2001), Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna (2010) 3 Idiots

(2009), Delhi Belly (2011) and henceforth, are full of Hinglish

language. In the movie Kuch Kuch Hota Hai the dialogues are:

Rahul (Shahrukh Khan) and Anjali ( Kajol) ka

jhagda:

“Anjali to Rahul: Rahul is a cheater, Rahul

is a cheater.

Rahul to Anjali: Hey mujhe cheater mat

kaho.

Anjali to Rahul: That’s what you are

cheater, cheater, cheater.”

(You Tube Movie Clip).

Thus we see that there was an abrupt change in the

language of the movie from colonial to global period. Cinema

became a sensation across Europe in the screening of Lumiere

moving pictures in London (1898). They made ten short films

out of which Sortie des Usines Lumiere a Lyon was the first and the

best.

Indian movies in English are not a recent development but

have a great history behind it. English films in India have

gained immense popularity in the last few years. These kinds

of movies are being greatly accepted by the urban people today

and Delhi Belly is one of such kind that has paved the way for the

future of Hinglish films in India. The first English language

movie in India was The Householder produced by the Merchant Ivory

Productions that emphasised on the Indian Culture, and then

came the movie of Aparna Sen, 36 Chowringhee Lane in 1981 and

Gandhi by Richard Attenborough (1982).

Last but not the least coming to the contemporary movies,

we find that here Hinglish language has cast its shadow all

over. Not a single movie today is devoid of the Hinglish

language. Hinglish movie presents a much more realistic view

of the lifestyle of modern India. There are a number of movies

where the dialogues are full of Hinglish language. Some of

them are discussed as below:-

• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE:

This Oscar winning movie by director Danny Boyle shows

the realistic view of Mumbai where on one side is present the

high skyscraper buildings and on the other, the slum areas.

The movie is about three slum kids, one of whom goes on to

become a millionaire. The movie is replete with Hinglish

dialogues. On the sets of ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ Prem

(Anil Kapoor) asks Jamal (Dev Patel) about his profession. To

this Jamal replies, “ I work in a call center. In Juhu.” On

further enquiring Prem makes fun of him by calling him an

Assistant Phone-Basher. Amusement ruffles among the audience

on the set. Jamal says further, “ I- I get tea for the people

and.”, when Prem suddenly interrupts in between saying, “ a

chai- wallah! Why didn’t you say?” (Youtube Movie Clip)

• AMRITSAR TO L.A.:

Directed by Gurinder Chadda, this movie is an adaptation

of the classic novel, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, one of the

greatest Victorian novelists. The movie is about a typical

Indian family with five young girls. The story revolves around

the search for eligible match for the two elder daughters and

the ensuing drama of love, emotions and marriage. There are

certain dialogues like, “Papa, just chill. Let me fix my

dupatta.” (Youtube Movie Clip).

• BOMBAY BOYS:

The movie made in 1998 by Kaizad Gustaad was a unique

film that related the story of three young men coming from

different backgrounds having different reasons to come to

Mumbai. Finally they met each other at the Mumbai airport for

the first time and decide to live together. But soon things

went out of control in the big city and due to lack of

opinions they get separated. The movie also has an abundant

use of Hinglish language. ( Posted by berges in Articles on 06

25, 2010).

There are certain movies which already posses an English

title like Bheja Fry, Daag- The Fire, Golmaal- Fun Unlimited, Kites, No

One Killed Jessica, The Dirty Picture etc. Nowadays these sorts of

titles are used to attract the people’s attention, which are

made for the marketing purposes. Again, there are movies in

which the dialogues are also written in English like the movie

Namak Halal where Amitabh Bachchan says “I can walk English,

talk English”. (Movie Clip). Today’s movies consist of 40% of

Hindi language, 40% of English language and 20% of slang.

There are also slang titles used in Bollwood movies like

Kaminey, Junglee, Batameez, The Dirty Picture. “Emotional Atayachar” is

one of the famous songs with slang words incorporated in it.

Delhi Belly is one of the contemporary movies, which is a mirror

to life. Here we find a number of slang terms used in this

movie which cannot be used in normal conversation but still

the youngsters do use it in daily conversation with peers and

like. Likewise slang is also used in English also mostly as a

result of the Hollywood movies, pop music and culture, and

even the modern literature. These have become a growing

fashion in movies and are used greatly by the people all over

whenever they open their mouth to speak. These slang languages

are used in plenty by today’s youngsters of schools and

colleges.

The effect of the metamorphosis of the language from

Hindi to English which may finally result into Hinglish is

both beneficial as well as a great loss for the generation of

today. Nowadays, knowing of Hinglish can help the people learn

two different languages at the same time- i.e. Hindi and

English. The Hinglish language can be used abundantly in the

field of communication where people are not able to

communicate their ideas in pure English or Hindi. Use of pure

Hindi or pure English can be difficult because many people

cannot understand completely nor can they speak both the

languages properly. So, Hinglish is one of the convenient

languages for use. There are some words in Hindi and English

which people mostly forget at the time of communication or may

not find the appropriate term for the word so they take

advantage of the mixture of the two languages – Hinglish.

Nowadays, even a maid servant uses Hinglish language in her

speech. If she is told in Hindi ‘chai ki pyali maze par rakh

do,’ then she remains confused because she is not familiar

with the terms ‘chai ki pyali’ and ‘maze.’ But, then again if

she is told ‘cup ko table par rakh do’ then she immediately

performs the action. So Hinglish is quite helpful. Last year

Binoo K John, a journalist who has tracked the rise of

Hinglish, said that within two decades it would become a

globally “accepted form”. (Bollywood English by Randeep

Ramesh).

However there exists another side of the coin. Hinglish

language is a loss for us because a person gets familiar with

neither Standard Hindi nor Standard English. They remain

hanging in between the two languages without having perfect

control on either of them. The newspaper said to have the

largest circulation in the world, The Times of India also

pinpointed to the growing apprehension; a worry that Indians

might lose their command of the proper way of speaking English

and with it a big commercial advantage over their rivals.

Even Vinod Mehta, one of the editors of Outlook magazine

has banned using the Hinglish language saying that it’s a

terrible slide in quality when respectable publications use

this hotchpotch of English and Hindi. Not only will the

standards of the two languages but also the two cultures

slowly get diminished with this degradation of the langauges.

In the poem “Grass” Jayanta Mahapatra also speaks about the

globalised world which is slowly moving towards its death

because of the great impact of the western culture which will

gradually lead to the distortion of the Indian culture:

I watch a little hymn

Turning the ground beneath my feet,

A tolerant soil making its own way in the

light of the sun.

Because of this reason nowadays there are very few

youngsters who are able to maintain their ‘sanskaras’ but the

others are taking shortcuts by adjusting themselves with the

growing fashion in the society. Earlier children called their

parents as “ma and babuji” but now they are using short terms

like “mom and dad” which shows influence of Hollywood in the

form of Hindi cinema that has greatly influenced the people of

India.

Evolution and change is a part of life which cannot be

stopped. Cultures, languages, societies, all are changing with

the passage of time and this change is inevitable. Still

measure should be taken to check its use in the academics. One

shouldn’t lose their connection with the roots in order to

follow the fashion blindly. The trend to use Hinglish

shouldn’t go out of hand and obliterate the purity of the

languages.

Thus, the present paper mostly aims at emphasizing the

changing perspectives of English language that was used in the

earlier movies, songs and literature that is pure Hindi or

pure English, and the gradual change of this language into a

new language called Hinglish in today’s contemporary cinema

and literature. It has both bad and good effects on our

language efficiency and it is in our hands how and to which

extent we use the hybrid language in a judicious and justified

manner.

WORK CITED:-

1. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/Hinglish.htm

2. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/hinglish%202.htm

3. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/bollywood-english.htm

4. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/Cinema_of_India.htm

5. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/does-hinglish-

democratize-english-33714.html

6. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/english%20used

%20globally.htm

7.

file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/english_films_india_india

n_movies.htm

8. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/English-Hinglish,

%20Angrezi-Fangrezi%20-%20India%20Real%20Time%20-%20WSJ.htm

9. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/language%20usedin

%20early%20hindi%20movies.htm

10. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/lumiere%20as%20eg.htm

11. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/Pop%20culture%201.htm

12.

file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/Raja_Harishchandra.htm

13. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/The%20Birth%20of

%20Hinglish%20%20%20The%20Viewspaper.htm

14. file:///E:/Shruti%20research%20paper/Top%2010%20Hinglish

%20Movies%20%Hindi%20Movie%20Reviews.htm

15. Chetan Bhagat’s Novel 2 States- The Story Of My Marriage

(pg no. 44)