Friday 15 February 2013

RAM, RAMA, SITA AND INDIAN ENGLISH GRAMMAR

An example for a noun: Ram went to the market.
Example for verb: Ram went quickly to the market.
Example for adjective: Ram told Sita that she is very beautiful.

There are two things i remember about my English grammar class. One, it made no sense. Two, everything was centered around Ram. I knew he was important because he was uttered in every grammar class, be it  English, Hindi, Kannada or Sanskrit. When i questioned why didn't Krishna, Mohan, Joseph or even a Hamid did not make it to the black board, i was asked to shut up. Frowns were exchanged, girls giggled, friends slapped their foreheads and the class continued.
I was surprised when Rama entered the picture. Who was this mysterious person? Was she the vamp aka doosri aurat we hadn't heard of. Her name was always used as the third person. Eh? Then should i term her the teesri aurat? NO. This was blasphemy. The teacher clarified that this is just an example and should be used when denoting plurals and possessive nouns. Revered  Ram and Sita still had their place reserved  in grammar classes.
I wondered the practicality of Ram and Sita's life as protagonists of grammar. If Ram had gone to the market in the morning (English grammar class), he would go again in the evening (Hindi grammar class). Phew! i figured he had quite an appetite. I did ask my biology teacher if this was possible. He promptly took his cane and spanked my soft bottom. That was the end of it.
I'm 22 now. My cousins are in classes ranging from UKG-6th grade. They have one thing in common though. You guessed it right sir. It's Ram. But here, Ram plays Angry Birds everyday, Ram bought a X-Box from the market and Sita drives a car to drop her kids to school.
It is an unwritten, yet strictly followed rule that Ram is the numero uno example. Be it IITs, IIMs, EFLUs or just a government school. Kashmir to Kanyakumari, Didi's Bengal to Modi's Gujrat. No questions asked. You can do your part by teaching and spreading the word about the same. This is heritage to be preserved for posterity.
Hey Ram!

2 comments:

  1. Picture credit: www.hellotrade.com

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  2. This post is not meant to offend to the Bhagwan Ram, Sita Maa or their followers. Any resemblance is purely co-incidental. If any error has crept in, it is purely a grammatical mistake.

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