Tej K Bhatia - Colloquial Hindi: The Complete Course for Beginners

Colloquial

Hindi

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Colloquial

Hindi

The Complete Course for Beginners

Tej K. Bhatia

First published 1996

by Routledge

This edition first published 2008

by Routledge

2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada

by Routledge

270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

2008 Tej K. Bhatia

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the

British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Bhatia, Tej K.

Colloquial Hindi : a complete course for beginners /

Tej K. Bhatia. [2nd, rev. ed.].

p. cm.

Previously published: 1996.

Includes index.

1. Hindi language Textbooks for foreign speakers English. 2. Hindi language Conversation and phrase books English. 3. Hindi language Grammar. I. Title.

PK 1935.B525 2007

ISBN13: 978-1-138-94972-0 (pbk)

In memory of my mother, Shrimati Krishna Wanti Bhatia and my father, Shri Parma Nand Bhatia

Preface

Since the publication of this book over a decade ago, it has undergone several reprints. Nothing is more gratifying for an author than to hear from his/her readers. I consider myself privileged to be the beneficiary of my readers reactions, suggestions, compliments and wish-lists which poured in from a highly diverse cross-section of readers around the globe. This encouraged me to create a revised and expanded version of the book. Based on the input that I have received, I know it is not the ideal solution to the multitudes of topics (ranging from the treatment of the Hindi script, grammatical details and cross-cultural insights) that one wishes to address; however, it is a modest step toward that goal.

Many changes have occurred since the first publication of the book. India is fast becoming a major global power. The dynamics of communicative situations further call for changes to reflect new situations and realities. Readers will find the following new changes and additions in this book:

• Facts and figures have been updated.

• The section dealing with the script has been beefed up considerably.

• Dialogues and prose texts integrate the Roman as well as the Devanagari in a way that reflects a mutually-feeding relationship between the two. As one of the anonymous reviewers of the book rightly noted, the execution of the Devanagari version of conversations and prose texts was cumbersome in the first edition. This limitation has been addressed.

• Roman is a non-syllabic script whereas Devanagari is syllabic. Whenever relevant, the complementary strengths of the two writing systems are exploited, particularly in explanations of grammar.

• While the new guidelines issued by the Government of India have been followed throughout the book (e.g. the letter jha; preference for e instead of ye in words such as chie; not separating the postpositions with the pronouns), readers are also exposed to variation (e.g. two ways of writing the third person singular, polite imperative forms and the past tense).

• Whenever relevant, the content has been modernized.

• New topics of cross-cultural communication have been introduced in the cultural notes (e.g. how to say no in socially sensitive situations, linguistic attitudes and hyper-politeness, etiquettes of gift-giving).

• Another innovation is the Online Resource Guide and the Internet links.

• Old errors and misprints have been corrected.

In spite of this, I am acutely aware that this work is not free from limitations. Therefore, I would be grateful for any comments, criticisms or suggestions that perceptive scholars may have on this book. Please send them to me at the following address: Linguistic Studies Program, 312 HBC, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York-13244-1160, USA or send an email to: tkbhatia@syr.edu.

Acknowledgements

I am especially indebted to Sophie Oliver, Senior Editor, Language Learning, for agreeing to consider and produce the new and revised version of this book and for her commendable patience and encouragement. I am equally indebted to three anonymous reviewers for their constructive and insightful input.

I have contracted many debts in the process of writing this book and its earlier edition. I am also grateful to my teachers and colleagues, Yamuna and Braj Kachru who have taught me and influenced me since my graduate school. I am also indebted to my friends and colleagues Rajeshwari Pandharipande, James W. Gair, Hans Hock, Meena and S.N. Sridhar, Rakesh Bhatt, Rajesh Kumar, William C. Ritchie, Jaklin Kornfilt, Jennifer L. Smith, Vasu Reganathan, Afroz Taj, Amer Bridger, Cassidy Perraeault and Dr Mangat R. Bhardwaj, the author of the companion volume on Punjabi, for their valuable discussions on matters of Hindi teaching and linguistics. Finally, I also owe my thanks to Dr P.R. Mehandiratta (Director General, American Institute of Indian Studies, New Delhi) and to my colleagues at the South Asia Center, Ann Gold, Jishnu Shankar and Susan Wadley, for their comments, support and encouragement.

My mother passed away before the first edition of this book became a reality. This has left a permanent vacuum in my life. My family migrated from the North West Frontier province close to the Pakistan and Afghanistan border, so Hindi was my mothers third language and according to the value system of that time she never had any formal schooling. During the writing of this book I remembered how at the insistence of her children she learned to sign her name in Hindi instead of using a thumb print as a signature. It is still a mystery to me how and when she learned to read the