In Bollywood,Hindi goes on a Roman holiday-While many writers pen scripts and screenplays in English before translating it inHindi,othersprefer Roman

In Bollywood, Hindi goes on a Roman holiday

Published: Friday, Aug 5, 2011, 8:00 IST

By Shabana Ansari | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA


Where is Hindi in Bollywood films? The days of clear enunciation and poetic dialogues spoken in chaste Urdu or Hindi in Bollywood movies may be over.

The past decade has brought about a dramatic shift not only on screen, but also within the film industry where the usage of Hindi as a mode of communication is incidental.

While many writers pen scripts and screenplays in English before translating them to Hindi, others prefer writing Hindi in Roman letters.

“These days, most films are conceived, fleshed out and largely executed in English which is the primary language for actors, directors and scriptwriters,” pointed out Anant Nath, managing editor of Caravan magazine, that organised a panel discussion on ‘The question of language in the new Hindi cinema’ on Thursday at Olive Bar in Mahalaxmi.

Filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra said the linguistic and demographic shift in Bollywood was inevitable.

“Most Indians are bilingual; the Hindi film industry reflects the socio-economic changes in the country,” he said.

The trend of translated dialogues in ‘urban’ films like Delhi Belly or Wake Up Sid is here to stay. “It’s the idea and not the words that need to connect with the audience,” said lyricist and writer Niranjan Iyengar, famous for his Urdu lyrics in My Name is Khan.

He said one can communicate urban edginess without compromising on the authenticity of the language.

Filmmakers say a director or writer not knowing Hindi has no effect on the film. “Art is nothing but a give and take between several sets of people belonging to different backgrounds. As long as that is in process, we have nothing to worry about,” said lyricist and writer Prasoon Joshi.