Vital Statistics

[Bharat Gupt]

Swaminathan Madhuresan wrote:
> ~It is a remarkably succint account of the Hindi-family (pl.dont translate
> ~as Parivaar), working and that is the big future of Hindi as Films, tv,
> ~and music-lit,pop fiction and even translations from other languages,
> ~have shown inspite of all  political hurdles.
>
>  This view from Delhi is the summary coming from the Center-State,
> modeled after 18-19th European statecraft. Even allowing private firms
> for one-way broadcast media have moved folks away from AIR and
> Doordarshan.

This view was a reaction to the negotiating ability of the Hindi family and its
contiguous languages as given by another scholar. This thread had begun by speculations
on the wide reach of Hindi and I prefer to stick to that issue.

But as you have injected extraneous reasons of Central support to Hindi, my reactions.

The films in India were neither supported, financed, subsidised or patronised (but
always well milked as a tax source) by the British and all Govts. at Centre. Hindi films
are among the largest industry in the world  because of the audience in India and
abroad, including diaspora, Gulf, Central Asia and in fifties Greece as well.

Where is the Centre-State relationship in it?  It is just like the Anglophonic Hollywood
having its willing audience in Europe. Why confuse the three language formuala of the
Central Govt. of India and the complaint of "Hindi imposition on Southern States" with
the enterprsie of films. Madras is still a  large centre for Hindi film production. Burn
some cinema-halls on the day of anti-Hndi agitation but make your money rest of the
years at the studios, this has been also an economic reality.

Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have used films to create their charismatic leaders
acting mythical roles, inspite of political Naickerism, democratically elected, a two
way traffic. No such  leaders in the Hindi belt.

Cable tv and Star Net, Zee, Sony and many others continue with Hindi for the same reason
:larger audience (50% of India know standard Hindi passively). The channels in other
languages are not going to reduce but only supplement Hindi.


>I see a different future with Net's expansion in India;
> Might have felt this from the responses to your mails in academic
> lists. A reduction in internal colonialism, what Pollock calls as
> "Deep Orientalism" working for millennia, is bound to happen with
> the WWW.
> Responses to my mail opposed my multiligual perception of the Indian society through
ages by either a globalsit perpective, such as promotion of Roman script or assertions
that Tamil-nation state has existed for two thousand years.

> The Net is a different animal:

Net is only a tehnology, it can be used, like all other earlier technologies for worse
than animal purposes. WWW can also be used for promoting Deep Orientalism and internal
colonialism sitting in anywhere in the globe, as recent highjacking was guided from
Europe. Del3 is in delhi but dot-com can be in Washington or North Sri Lanka.

>it is two-way channel, opposite
> of newspaper, radio, film and tv which are usually, State tools
> in the underdeveloped world.

What a surprise ,after you and Mr. Ganesan ( two bodies and one soul, such was the
concurrence between the two of you) just yesterday, advocated for the uniformity of the
Roman script to be imposed one all Indian scripts. Please dont forget that most of the
data base is made and managed in the First World. There are many who see it as a New
Colonialism. And how much levelling has it done in the First World, any way. 3%
americans controlling the wealth of 97% ? MAegers and Mergers, after net not SMALL but
BIG is beautiful.

Two way traffic may begin when a farmer in Tirunellvelli can send email in his language
to another in Orissa, and the technolgy translates and transcribes into Orria for ready
use. Bll Gates can give the program (to the Indian First World !),  but not power, water
and computer to the farmer.

Bharat Gupt