'Indians need to appreciate the rich repository of its languages' - Kiran Manral
New Delhi, April 22: The purpose of language is to communicate, convey thoughts and bring us together. But now, at a time when languages are more often used to divide, to create an impression of superiority, to make you look like an out-of-touch elitist, "the need to begin appreciating the rich repository of languages that we have in India, is a dire need", says versatile author Kiran Manral.
One way is greater emphasis on the use of mother tongues and more translations from this rich repository we are fortunate to possess, said the Mumbai-based writer who supplements her eight books in English -- both fiction and non-fiction (on a variety of topics) -- with being an activist in various spheres, a regular columnist, a Ted Talk motivational speaker and an indefatigable organiser of literary events.
"The fact remains that we are all polyglots in India and that is such a beautiful thing. All languages are born of the basic need to communicate. We have our mother tongue, and then perhaps Hindi and English. We need to begin recognising the richness of all our languages and appreciate them; perhaps no other country has so many official languages, not to mention regional languages and dialects, some of which are dying out. With each language comes its entire written culture... we have such a rich repository. We need to begin appreciating it, rather than using language to create walls between us." Manral told IANS in an email interview.
The multilingualism, which was one of the strengths of the country, is now emerging as a major threat to the nation, creating divides in the name of religion, majority/minority, et al.
How can we bridge the gap between the hundreds of languages spoken in India?
"I think the fact that we have so many languages that co-exist is a lovely example of our synchronised culture and heritage. We need to encourage more translations, so we can read across writings from various languages, and also encourage the use of the mother tongue, both written and spoken, across the country through various initiatives," Manral, 46, suggested.
Asked whether she wished to write in Hindi sometimes, Manral said: "I hope I will surely sometime, but first I must work on my Hindi writing skills really hard."
Being fortunate enough to be on a platform where she can give voice to various social issues demanding serious concern, she also never shies away from her social responsibilities along with her literary chores and adroitly balances the two.
She was amongst the founder-members of the campaigns Child Sexual Abuse Awareness Month (CSAAM) and Violence against Women Awareness Month (VAWAM) which ran for many years across all social media platforms. Post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, she also founded India Helps -- a volunteer network that has worked on long term rehabilitation of disaster victims as well of the 13/7 (2011) Mumbai bomb blast victims.
She is also a prolific blogger on everything from motherhood to feminism, writing in a wry and understated manner, eagerly and avidly read and remembered.
Manral, whose most recent published work was "Saving Maya", about a new stab at romance a divorced mother gets, however, also stresses the importance of the quality of language.
People from various backgrounds are writing books. Do you think this is a welcome trend or is it detrimental to the world of writing?
"I'm ambivalent about this. I think everyone has a story in them, but I also believe not everyone should be allowed to tell that story. Very often, most folks think that it is only the story that matters and do just that -- tell the story."
"But writing fiction is so much more; it is nuance, and style and language and the love for words, and characterisation. All these must fall into place to have a compelling narrative. At the end of it, it is the readers who will decide what touches a chord with them."
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
