The city of graces takes pride in speaking a zubaan which is laced with sophistication and refinement. But, over the years there has been a perceptible change in Lucknow's lingua franca. Vijay Chopra runs a reality check on the new trend.
Avadhis love to gloat over their two possessions: zubaan (language) and Dussehri aam. Both, say the natives, are imbued with sweetness and refinement, and give Lucknow a distinctive identity. Many would find it difficult to dispute the claim.
The zubaan of Lucknow is a hybrid of Hindi, Urdu, Persian, Arabic and British languages. Basically, it's Hindustani: heavily laced with Hindi and Urdu words. This makes it easy to speak and understand. The city of graces uses exalted forms of addresses like janab, huzur, hazrat and sarkar. The most preferred pronoun, too, is ‘aap’ and not ‘tu’ or ‘tum’, and the natives, like Avadhi cusines, show great delicacy and taste in the selection of words.
Avadh's lingua franca was best captured in Muzaffar Ali's bollywood flick Umrao Jaan. Its dialogues had words picked straight from the city's lexicon. But that was circa 1981. Much water has flown since then. The conversations overheard on the streets of Lucknow today sound diluted, at times even pedestrian in terms of word selection. Many say the 'Pehle Aap' tehzeeb has given way to 'Pehle Tum'.
So, is it time to revisit the Lakhnavi zubaan? Or, has it become too obsolete to find a pride of place in a fast changing cultural mileu?
Veteran bookseller Ram Advani dismisses the notion of any decline in city's style of speech. Advani, who takes pride in calling himself a Lucknowite first and a Sindhi later, says: “Our zubaan is too deep-rooted to lose its grace and delicacy.” He goes on to add that language evolves with culture and it's a natural process that Lakhnavi speech now has the influence of words imported from its immigrant population. He, however, admits that “city's commercial intelligentsia has expanded, but its cultural imagination has not grown in that proportion.”
Advani's views find support from writer Ravi Bhatt. “Lucknow's language will remain as dominant as the Banaras gharana,” says an optimistic Bhatt. He, too, emphasises that cultural change is inevitable and languages also go through a metamorphosis.
Cultural evolution has always found roots in Avadhi soil. This part of the country has always remained open to vistas of change. Fimmaker Sudhir Mishra, who hails from the city, says Lucknow is far richer than the sophistication of thought, and a sense of grace permeates through its cultural ethos. “The idea of tameez and tehzeeb will change. Zubaan is not static, it's dynamic. It incorporates the new trends and one should get used to it,” says Mishra.
The streets of Lucknow buzz with anecdotes on how the art of language has blossomed many romantic relationships. Letters laden with delicate praises were exchanged among the Cupid-struck till a few years back. Lakhnavi zubaan has also been a representative of the Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb with 'adaab' and 'namaskar' being the main salutations.
Lucknow chronicler Yogesh Praveen, however, laments the loss of refinement in conversations. “The major reason for decline is the influx of immigrants. They have eroded the characteristic grace of Lucknow and replaced it with rough and rude words.” Praveen also attributes the fall to the growing dominance of English. “Parents, instead of instilling city's culture into their children, coax them to speak English. So, how can we expect kids to pick up the conversational etiquette which is peculiar to the city of Nawabs,” says Praveen.
Writer KP Saxena, who has penned dialogues for Bollywood blockbusters Lagaan and Jodha Akbar, is more harsh in his remarks. “Our zubaan has become rotten and there is little hope that it will regain its lost glory,” says Saxena.
Inhabitants may give a divided verdict but most of them favour the retention of delicacy in speech. Advani and Bhatt say people should set examples that can be emulated. “I do not think the SMS generation has corrupted our zubaan. If 5 out of 100 youngsters have grace in their words, then it's a healthy trend,” says the veteran bookseller.
A little uplift to Avadhi art of conversation seems a plausible proposition. It just calls for a balancing act between the old and new lexicons. Perhaps, the natives can take a leaf from French writer Guy de Maupassant who said: “My choices are simple. I like the best.” The same can be applied to the selection of words!
Vijay Chopra
(Newsletter has used some photographs from the blog of Ghummakkars. Thanks to them many of us who are outside Lucknow can still admire our good old city)
Avadhis love to gloat over their two possessions: zubaan (language) and Dussehri aam. Both, say the natives, are imbued with sweetness and refinement, and give Lucknow a distinctive identity. Many would find it difficult to dispute the claim.
The zubaan of Lucknow is a hybrid of Hindi, Urdu, Persian, Arabic and British languages. Basically, it's Hindustani: heavily laced with Hindi and Urdu words. This makes it easy to speak and understand. The city of graces uses exalted forms of addresses like janab, huzur, hazrat and sarkar. The most preferred pronoun, too, is ‘aap’ and not ‘tu’ or ‘tum’, and the natives, like Avadhi cusines, show great delicacy and taste in the selection of words.
Avadh's lingua franca was best captured in Muzaffar Ali's bollywood flick Umrao Jaan. Its dialogues had words picked straight from the city's lexicon. But that was circa 1981. Much water has flown since then. The conversations overheard on the streets of Lucknow today sound diluted, at times even pedestrian in terms of word selection. Many say the 'Pehle Aap' tehzeeb has given way to 'Pehle Tum'.
So, is it time to revisit the Lakhnavi zubaan? Or, has it become too obsolete to find a pride of place in a fast changing cultural mileu?
Veteran bookseller Ram Advani dismisses the notion of any decline in city's style of speech. Advani, who takes pride in calling himself a Lucknowite first and a Sindhi later, says: “Our zubaan is too deep-rooted to lose its grace and delicacy.” He goes on to add that language evolves with culture and it's a natural process that Lakhnavi speech now has the influence of words imported from its immigrant population. He, however, admits that “city's commercial intelligentsia has expanded, but its cultural imagination has not grown in that proportion.”
Advani's views find support from writer Ravi Bhatt. “Lucknow's language will remain as dominant as the Banaras gharana,” says an optimistic Bhatt. He, too, emphasises that cultural change is inevitable and languages also go through a metamorphosis.
Cultural evolution has always found roots in Avadhi soil. This part of the country has always remained open to vistas of change. Fimmaker Sudhir Mishra, who hails from the city, says Lucknow is far richer than the sophistication of thought, and a sense of grace permeates through its cultural ethos. “The idea of tameez and tehzeeb will change. Zubaan is not static, it's dynamic. It incorporates the new trends and one should get used to it,” says Mishra.
The streets of Lucknow buzz with anecdotes on how the art of language has blossomed many romantic relationships. Letters laden with delicate praises were exchanged among the Cupid-struck till a few years back. Lakhnavi zubaan has also been a representative of the Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb with 'adaab' and 'namaskar' being the main salutations.
Lucknow chronicler Yogesh Praveen, however, laments the loss of refinement in conversations. “The major reason for decline is the influx of immigrants. They have eroded the characteristic grace of Lucknow and replaced it with rough and rude words.” Praveen also attributes the fall to the growing dominance of English. “Parents, instead of instilling city's culture into their children, coax them to speak English. So, how can we expect kids to pick up the conversational etiquette which is peculiar to the city of Nawabs,” says Praveen.
Writer KP Saxena, who has penned dialogues for Bollywood blockbusters Lagaan and Jodha Akbar, is more harsh in his remarks. “Our zubaan has become rotten and there is little hope that it will regain its lost glory,” says Saxena.
Inhabitants may give a divided verdict but most of them favour the retention of delicacy in speech. Advani and Bhatt say people should set examples that can be emulated. “I do not think the SMS generation has corrupted our zubaan. If 5 out of 100 youngsters have grace in their words, then it's a healthy trend,” says the veteran bookseller.
A little uplift to Avadhi art of conversation seems a plausible proposition. It just calls for a balancing act between the old and new lexicons. Perhaps, the natives can take a leaf from French writer Guy de Maupassant who said: “My choices are simple. I like the best.” The same can be applied to the selection of words!
Vijay Chopra
(Newsletter has used some photographs from the blog of Ghummakkars. Thanks to them many of us who are outside Lucknow can still admire our good old city)
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