SAFARNAMA-E-URDU
URDU BECOMES A YOUNG FAVOURITE On Urdu Day today, we trace the history, journey and status of the language in contemporary India URDU IN THE TIME OF MEME CULTURE
Ye ‘nanak’ ki ye ‘Khusraw’ ki ‘daya-shankar’ ki boli hai, ye diwali ye baisakhi ye id-ul-fitr holi hai, magar ye dil ki dhadkan aajkal dil ki jalan kyun hai, watan mein be-watan kyun hai”
This is the language of Nanak, Khusrao and Daya Shankar, this is Diwali, Baisakhi, Eid-ul-Fitr and Holi. Why has this heartbeat become a cause of heartburn? Why is it in exile in its own country? These lines by poet Manzar Bhopali encapsulate the uncertainty Urdu — a part of the Hindustani language spoken in north India — is going through. Urdu, which translates to Lashkar (army), took birth under the influence of Persian and Arabic languages brought in by various invaders.
It was also influenced by the dialects and regional languages spoken in areas bordering Delhi. As the Indian sub-continent observes Urdu Day today, we trace its history, journey and its position in contemporary India.
“Till the end of the 18th century, all official documents were in Persian. But with the downfall of the Mughal empire, Urdu became more common. The British made Urdu the official language around the 1830s, and till 1947, Urdu was the medium of instruction in schools,” says Abdul Aziz, former Urdu professor at Zakir Hussain Delhi College.
It is interesting to note that “Dilli was called the Urdu-yi Mualla — exalted camp, and the language was referred to as Zaban-i Urdu-yi Mualla — the language of the exalted camp,” says historian Rana Safvi.
What happened with the Partition? “In the 1920s, came the dividing forces of All India Muslim League and Indian National Congress. The final nail in the coffin was when Pakistan declared Urdu its national language. This pushed people in India to do away with Urdu completely. It became a victim of communal politics,” explains Aziz.
Today, there are not many Urdu professors, leading to a dip in the number of students “Many youngsters, including non-Muslim readers, are asking for authors and poets like Munawwar Rana, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Makhdoom, Majaz Lakhnawi and Ismat Chughtai. opting for it. Here, the question of the viability of Urdu arises. How to preserve the language? Language and literature fests are aid the cause.
“Jashn-e-Rekhta and Jashne-Adab (festivals) are helping revive the language. People are speaking it, and also reading it in Devanagari and Roman scripts. There’s also a rising interest among people to learn the script,” says Safvi. They are learning the Urdu script,” says AK Zaidi at Maktaba Jamia, established in the 1920s. Language, he feels, cannot be claimed by anyone. “Zubaan kisi ki jaageer nahi hoti; Urdu toh paida hi Hindustan mein hui thi. (No one has ownership over Urdu; it was born in Hindustan),” he says. “Calls to preserve history and culture falls on deaf ears because the way we’ve been told stories is boring,” says artist Nasheet Shadani. His initiative Ishq Urdu aims to modernise the language so it helps the younger generation to relate with it. “It is time to re-invent storytelling. Social media allows to tell stories in interesting ways,” he says.