Daago Mama: Thanks to Radio Tarana for maintaining Hindi language decorum, sensitivity
and proper usage
You must be wandering, Thakur, or Fiji Pundit seem to have
become his old shadow of Daily Post
days when he used to be Liu Muri,
which in Hindi is Aage Picche (a slimy
person with changing views). Some would think, one day he criticises Radio Tarana’s news team for using
non-understandable, but high level of Hindi and next minute he is praising the
station.
Of course I did not criticise them for using high
standard of Hindi, (in fact I am thankful for that). In fact I was critical of
them not translating to English or explaining the words in more understandable terms
to attract interest of listeners for whom “pure” Hindi is difficult to
understand, especially for school-age children schooling with Pakehas.
As a Hindi radio station geared for all Indians, Radio Tarana did well to maintain its
decorum and respect for standard Hindi language and did not go down to make it
into Pidgin Hindi and were careful not to compromise with linguistic
engineering, like done by the rival Apna
990.
For example, in Apna
990, language used may be considered by some as inappropriate for a radio
station where they use the term ‘Daago
mama”. Full version is: miyan ke kitchen,
bappa ke jamin, ka bole mausa, Daago mama. It means husband’s kitchen,
father’s land, what say uncle, urging mother’s brother (Mama- uncle) to do
something unusual or spectacular. This is very colloquial or informal Hindi not
generally regarded suitable for formal usage. Of course the debate on use of
Fiji –Hindi is another issue to be discussed later.
One need to appreciate that in its 16 years of
existence, Radio Tarana did its best
to ensure the high standard and respectability of Hindi language used at the station.
I had a talk with Radio Tarana where there was more hurt than complaint for my
doing a piece on standard of Hindi in news. (Read article at: http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=207937644965682419#editor/target=post;postID=7561154533754616799]
I was told, there was nothing wrong in raising the
issue, but it could have been done discreetly. Agreed. This is because Thakur
had always been regarded as a friend and well-wisher of the Radio Tarana team, has a history of
working closely with them, hence this behaviour was not expected of me. I could
have spoken directly to them. Agreed. Radio stations are supposed to be run by
experts who need to have the pulse of the community. My role as a blogger
called me to publish anyway, and bring issues to public attention. Or if not,
there are qualified people, those near to the community, academically
qualified, with media experience, running business in Communications and media
from their community, who can help. It often needs an Indian to understand and appreciate
Indian psych.
The hurt felt by Radio
Tarana is understandable. It was the same that I felt when I was stabbed in
the back by those I considered to be my friends. But in this case, I was being
constructive, not vindictive or vengeful as I recently experienced from Indian
lynch mob.
Venkat Raman from Indian
Newslink, associated with Indian community leaders to kick me in the teeth
for exercising my freedom to speak, my rights to exercise democracy. They
worked in conjunction with political opportunists, and working with a Labour Party
political apprentice, they were able to have me suspended as vice president of
Waitakere Indian Association. This Thakur had provided some seven years of free
and sellable articles to Ravin Lal’s paper, yet Venkat is prepared to publish comments
by Vinod Patel, head of Hindu Council of NZ and owner of Mega mitre 10 that
Thakur was a failed journalist, writing hateful and unresearched articles. The
irony is that Indian Newslink had
been using those articles for FREE to sell its advertisements for so many
years. It is such hypocrisy of Indian leaders and their media which made me start
a watchdog, so that no little god in media can again be the judge, jury and
executioner. Erroneous reporting were not corrected, neither was I given a
right of reply by Indian Newslink. Therefore,
my blogsite, Fiji Pundit is to work as a watchdog for Indian media which
feels invisible and beyond reproach.
Hence now people with a gripe against our media have
somebody to speak for them. Fiji Pundit is here to expose
weaknesses, vice and lack of journalistic ethics publicly, and bring hitherto
little Gods, all powerful Indian media to public attention and exposure. Indian
media appears to have become too close to rich businesses politicians and its
advertisers and the community have little say where issues concerning the
community are sacrificed.
Fiji Pundit
will fill that vacuum and publish what is not generally seen elsewhere.
Therefore the issue I raised about use of language and
education role of media in Radio Tarana was an example of how
social media would work as a watchdog and hopefully, a medium of change.
