 आदेही होनागगी लिक्गनागा में चलत्चानादेगा. जब कहांगी आप औगनागी में जब है! भी उतादागे अज़ा थी सबतादे जब उदियोंगे है. शार्स सेँमो चीका वरापताल एक. ईनागगे सबतादाईगे. उटी सार्स यह कहागे है. । । । । । । और लगा क्या अएदे लेए विर्यानी बादंगा है जो मगर्ईक कचानी कानी विर्यानी के ब्रजिए उनकालि के रहे होगे, अगर कचानी नहीं को एदे लेए हेंगा उंबावाशौत कislot true of blank नहीं कि रहाँं भी अश्टीक अदेनामा �uard ओ्वेगी और। बवाले थो ज़ी तेमएश कईगा जहार ढिश्ध. वी वीईएगी सथाई, Hai Telum觉得 the बिजुद अएवरी बुते क Jerry और दलिचिई बवादगे फ़ गर कोछया Many जी Freya k Shop on the भी को� anywhere अवर धीष रैटे तोpe , अरादार, हमोंगा दूप्ट्टेढन, म विस्टिक वेतिंग सकते रहा है, बुत्रघ सब है, ठिराटूर किस कर आए दूप्ट्टं, फॉँटरूर जाही भग आच्तार कर जाही रहा, इं वर्खिश का और्टार, इन प्रशाशी का इत आट उगटार, तरुर दिश्डिसे कुछिस्तारी बीआजा क्य मेरे उनकि से बीगाँ वो जुता, और चल्द, यखदा तरीवो सकच तरुर भी उसध माखित कानजा, यये श्जछि तरुर भी वॉल्पा, और वादिलिया और माझा, आपने 1989 बोग, आप हैंगी नोवल आप, आप में आप गवाज लिट नाप गवाज आप आप वोग. आप वोग वोग में रविग नाप वोग, एक वोग वाज जावाग अप अप दाविदाए एक जाच तुछ अच्टाए किवाज, भोदुवर्वेंगे समवने ज़रनलिने तो शटाहरी टावीदार में के यह तने वी सकताशा ज़रनलिस्तेग करतेग थो दे बाजगा सस्था और और दो एक लिस्टिएं कोडे दिलगाया नाय करनली क्या लिस्टिंट्री परे रेर आदца. सिंच्या auspiring literary writer. और दिवट्टे लिए मुझिये की स्था करीझा रहा से वागे अग़ूँँँँँँँँँ. जुरनलिस्म आं पोलीट्टेक्स। तह caps, it's almost as though Mr. Tharur, by your very existence, you were trying to refute poor Mr. Kahnely. But I have to say that the overwhelming impression that I've been left with after having read this collection is firstly of course how broadly you range. ॐू, आद्वार, आद्वार, अब आही, मीश्टार, रब भाश्टाईन आद्वार, आब light on and get right to it. पूत आब आद्वार, मैं, और उजा पारी बासे, मैं, मैं, वाशा पास करन पाश्टाईन टोत, बबतार, मैं, मैं, युम स मुँर, Who tries to the occasion better than you So the title of your collection and indeed of this session is Pride, Prejudice, and Punditry So can you give me an example of something you are frightful of Prejudiced against and something you were completely wrong about as a pundit Okay. Well, first of all, let me thank you for your very generous opening remarks to say that I admire your writing very much, Palavi has a so lovely weekly mail that goes out to subscribers called the Global Witchia graders that I would recommend you to get on to because it really is a wonderful insight, both into the world and into her mind, a fabulous place to spend time in. Having said that, Sylt Conely also mentioned the fourth point, which I have also violated, the404 Pramjyasah । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । । साथ मदववय्थसे आचिलान्त्य।।णवज्र्थिए, ृस्यसे , धज आनता परेखी़्त दागा सचक्तानीस जया किसी करता. तसी ने वो सोनतवीश्र स्व स्के यह थी भी बेहय Murrayarrass भल खाँन आत्कल तो hanger के नह्र Fashion यह गस तुर्ब यह थी आतले। सीगी नूद सेमसा तोगा छिस ढ़ लग्ट वंग sends ती ठब्रय Muslims ईभ तुकॉट गये भीं हें को सेम्टिन कि को दध अफझी, और marketing �走स वे ओडरлаг मे हेंलिए भाचनाणमागोगे पर तो रवावावाय्ंवावावावा सद्याठादी, अमाह्चादाधी, छतागोर, इंदाज़ातियागाऋ भी होगे की यी श्तनाझ freestyle. preguntas हुिंट से थ сценंड़ाइ मिसकते हो णोम बही। अनौन्जन आँग्य बा fallen आबनि शफाभ गईहूँ Offстав like ऑम से स़िएर work चट НЕТ्नेरूँं Neheruटसय पम सगे लाएंगी नियो औzioneкая मिजगका okay दउला थिम्ती पत दिश्यटंion आcjęस शफा़ त्ज से light इंप्रार्ऽम्र्सि on a desert island somewhere... and you had to pick one of these leaders to be stranded with. अस्थे लग क्रीन? And before you answer... अचनियग दलस�命 और वाsol, I want to hazard a guess and tell me if I'm right... अचन्थियिण आभच ड़गedarज ऑजatters you would pick Tagore... अचनियों च्छागीवाद ड़ग Cas, he was really great humanist who strove... बघती यप कर कायाईडन्ग चीनने करिए आपॉम हो सचानत साटर साथ और कर суत ह inaugurya से वोत सकी लगेंолов वोतमता क्याईडन्या, हामाग भी ददा suspant इस डरक साथसे रफने कास स cut tie असे च approaches इसकी बижуूँ ज्हु terrified करी San and क approve �完了 उर्ठिक बखत न� only जान्त्रारारम अगे पुचे वागे लगे ही चीवाई जान के सब शख्फ है. अचित हैं। बातले में जे वागे सच्फ स्फूँ गो चानगेabsाईग बागा. औह ओगे भो एक वो को लोगे जान्तारारमगा पच्थ बागा. , with some of his ideas of language and an emotion and feeling are enough to strum the most Jade and Unromantic heart describing the Taj Mahal as a teardrop on the cheek of time. Kenya is something I've never forgotten once I've read it. Or his magnificent poem about the prospect of death, which was actually found by Wilfred o Merner's mother copied out in his diary when the young poet was killed in World War I. A poem called, When I Go from Hence, Let This Be My Parting Word, absolutely magnificent thing, lashes is his romantic poor which every people think some of it is deliberately ambiguous that he could be referring to lover who could be referring to God park that's for you to decide certainly if you imagine the lover at some of the most striking love poetry. Written in the 20th century so there is all the computing even more than all of this and I don't remember he was not only a great poor it was a great play right. At one point at three place running on the West end at the same time. आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आ� आ� आ� आप आप आप आप आप आप आप आ మనిరక ఫిర్కాసినిలేనినిసిక్గార్టిలోత్ట్యండిందా నిపార్టాదా. ఆసియనించితరిరరాలిలవసౚిపినినిిసిండిసి. लिएक्तिर थिखकोँ देखर च्यरं सो Gilevell krepati lnei demeinds कि उनक्र छो दो लगणेडी वो। kri' humid nevonbright AFKONROSATIONAL TOPICS वोसग के यूँत जब जी सगुज़रूजत है। hai. आदढेचा काि अड़ागा यालंद आदेशिया ठथ देशा को देशा था थी घगा। यहकी बात तो बगना वो ते ही अ सलगें में, भात वो आप आप अ atenशां सईटीग, लगासा में एक है एक अगे या ज़े देशान ख सब भो वो गर रहा है बात, बब्च तब आपनायादिन सब रहसा, आपकास्वात्टा, मजानएक महों वगलानात तब उपोदोमों किते, मुझां आपकादिनी मुझाने कन बनाव अपना का सताईदते देखाईगे। कि वूँए और प्र्द्छासे क्ताईगे कॉच्दाचवाता, आने मनचए। अग ज़ूग के रीष्टृसकनैगे अग नहींनाब जाफ्टाई ग़ टेनाईएगे अचिछ़। आख आप फ्ता औंगे ज़ाबाचा। आर गंबिरुच न आप आदिबा narri l., आप बाचाका जल्गिया। वहँन आप अवगा भी छत्� разгे। यह देजुन्त सुआए फींज? नहीं आउग देजी केंगेगेगजा द मैं जाए्वि सूएग ननार्गन pins ले ministreू मैम्में जब यहंईगीगेग ढानबाड Onbe N pou Da gathering आउग जumbai रऔ of to more than � note-comment. की सी चоїऩ़ कहूएन? नूओ वेशाड多少 ूए at Sheesh eas ूए Yale ूए। उपनquer Hind भल्वायापा कोई भी अफोडlあー मुनया�ट बैदर योंग Appreci कोंनओ का और से में थीनी है अ�蔡चतर से मूल की, कमी के दूरके ंगा geology कें री बास Death नहीह, के वेँखgines वेधा मुन שלי के उ� Sanders भॊओरती ये associations CAS the probably a pragma no story of how John Foster, Dulles, Eisenhaath, a secretary of state of the vyftyce, allegedly said to Nehru, Dulles, by the way, was a man who notoriously said that neutrality between good and evil is itself evil, in other words implying that India's Stand was evil. And the story is, Dulles says to Nehru, are you with us or against us. And Nehru replies, yes. गड एह वyn 230 perspectiv MEजिन भी तियोंगाळ येgh और और छाना है वीज्गी तर todavía लेकोन दे Coupleешь या वै �高 कि शिकलगर त्वीखा तीकगाब ख़ी दउ लेकें भाप या लगाham सोतwach क्ते ञृ़् कीings पन दो गड- underuss  Actual Peace decre BOB ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ्värðd dh crecamo ek tut mar ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ practicing at authentic colonial instincts kicked minimum ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ ژ  chocolates दरनाचय्ट को ये देच्टीक़वादणवेगाता आप रवाज़ाती मगलीद, खुगी रशी अगी, खोगी तुदा आज़ादागी लिए और गरगाया नासाता जाई, षीत कम तुप आशांगी। एख उंद्चिसाद करणी, जए सम कगी औसकर कगाखो साई कली से छोंगमनेmunition कम सब आचको कई धून दुः से जएस ख़ा Traditional औरसक छों आच के सहीं कयमना कि lynn tee basi lacha नहींटे ळे रेंभ� μεजाँशिय कोभींजी लेगतinen की औरसे गरटे कि नहीं मेंते विक हि स wholesale ्ज के नाँ उगाँ । । । । । �特�ाद обязательно on annually start on January 26 भी थबज़नité कहlending technical तचया Joel श द्रहनeed तच Planet तच घरु टिकार न listeners वो सक्रुजा अगा वी बलने क्या आदाँ काता Kardashian, क्या वह अग्वे कचुशार को आप लगाग कर पने वो शुए अदों की एक सदे सभवाँग और तुछांए कर है कि तुछ आज़ा खाए तुछांगा अप थुचाओट्दित अप रच्टीशी. अदों सै आब एडतान ड़ियासी ने की मिस्थहांगागाखाउ सी लोगँकोंगेर। कि मुझा फील दोजियासी गगाखागागी ब्र Bahn । अदियास कर लोगग हो आप देगागेर धो मुझा जबने कि मोरा लीजी मूझा जोस्या। तो रहमु स्वस्या। गब भी थी, exam सुत, ख़िजग абсолют, महा साँँव कुक इज़े दगाय। अं care OK ऍ viver ज़े नहीं तगतिऊशी गा िूहे भ இज़ि ब सच�Sim सचवस्याह ह्लिक में सीँश्या दii णईती लगट कुक लोब कि वाँ साँँव दीशामकग patience the silence and we're seeing amateur polarization than in the past. Also there's no question about that this polarization within almost every democracy. That's much worse than that it was. I mean, take the United States as an example where really the Republicans and Democrats simply don't agree on anything. And literally fundamental questions as well as subsidiary ones. I didn't India where there was actually a long tradition of respect and courtesy across  ಮಿಱಲಿ ಮಕರಳವತಿಕಂದಾಡಾಲನ ಮಿಕಾಡಿಲಿಲಿ ಪಿಲಿಕದಾಮತ್ ಟ್ಸಿವಿಲಿಲಿ ಮಿಕರತ್ತಿ. ಮಿಕರರಿ ಉಿ ವಿಹಿಹಿ ವರಿನಿಮ ಮಿಕರಾಣರಹಹಿತಿ ಕಿಹ೦ಾನಲ ಮಿವಿಲಾನಿಮಿಸಿ.title-division atoire vironment affairs  Cau Dionysio ingenut riteson a few people like Mr. Vajpaay, Mr. Kujral and so on as Chairman of that committee and I was deeply honoured to be made Chairman of the Academy of External Affairs Committee in my first term as an Opposition MP, which is my second term in Parliament. But no sooner had I been re-elected my third term then the government decided that they wanted it for the ruling party and because in our system they can do that even though again ढ stir आप बवाद बवान व्re असी आदी बवाद ख़भाद च़गटाब बबव जी शिल दईगुव ज़़ित आप बवाबाब बवाद शिल वाद बवाभाद आप ब भाबचाद विद सब आप बवाद during that. So I think it's not entirely entirely a loss. But where do you think that this impulse is coming from? Why are we seeing greater polarization? What, you know, you know, you sort of describe that this is happening around the world. How would you diagnose this? Well I diagnose it slightly sort of in political science terms. There was this old classic division that the French political scientist Maurice एस्किलएछ ती का वह दिः आप ग़ाज़े भी लुग और पराफिंटी शिक्च्चा looks आब आप उगा, और मेंने उगा रेए, औरलमग सकन र सी एग प्रुस्ट्रुपृस आप उगा शब्टे शाम हदोग, उगा, आप ख़ी प्रुस्ट्रुश्टृपृस वी दोद कूँल के लि़क कनकरिष्म मेरुझित check वो के वैढ़ने अ़वी लिच कोन्लिक के लि़क नमु बर tears ऺोजा at the manufacture । आना के अने ब्सύआरुी नुस Palm कोлен कास चकचष्त अंटो स Beijing वी बुचार खूलगे था आख़ाली ही वेगना वोन्धार में हैं वी खुलगे इर वनंधार वो पुईटेवास। आप वी वो वो औगे का बना वागाठी षागए गटे वो तुशागा वो ईप लाई. काल एसे दे फाद वीच्चान हैं कि वो जाते हैं. वीटलातने तम आपाहागते। अश्व क्षेटटा कहाआ एक जो कर आपना श्स्वसादग लिजाके आगा, निसका आपनाश्चा हेडवागते नहीं तो तो गगा। यो गर वरने था यो वो अच्छाए इंडीर। यधम्गट्माजाद तो चूदली सरड़ा near India, यधम्गट्माजाद साजदली ऽक यधम्गट्माजा म है, मूज Mi shikant paati that wants to re-imagine and rework the nature of the state, of the nature of the country, it's of the idea of India, that famous phrase of Tagore. Verses and others that wants to hold on to certain ways of doing things that perhaps the country is moving on from, who knows? In many parts of the world that this kind of conflict has become so fundamental because one of the principle players at least has come with a radically different agenda from anything that's gone before. ति gdzie हoks और.. इस युज्य मी अफिर भगाजिटास णेच ज配। मों आतनील भगाजिटार । में निवम Him गцुरुं perspectives लिए..! और इस बना पन मौत्तिम शहा न fraction आतिस राभनश मार वाता है और आद से लग आग Anyway दो. उस जित् में इस शींद हैcondnd Adam Shri lap Purlig Fin with us whole against us is is right there you know why is that there is absolute no meeting place between a 않은 vision France and the McCormdon vision of France that there is no common ground similarly between Mr Modi's vision of India and that of the Congress Party. Or the herantwand vision intent are the secular parties in turkey. So on and so forth. Therefor in every country you're seeing a far more fundamental different मैं तो मुड़एं सास्वरमँंगा वागा ज़ोंगुग ज़ोग आगिए आदजाएा मुझा भी वगागगा उंजे. में तो वह थी तो बशवाजा से सब गर गगा तो भी तो और इस के वो सोने काई नहीं. भरन ड़ीवक्र मैंगंता है, नहीं सब रव चंजा में से शमना वेखा मून जाएस लाचा चाँँा और वो अगो, कारी कर की जगी है कुरी शके वेशन के जन्जा अ पता, में़ वैंका के चाहता, लगा वो का कए दाईग दीगवालगा शकेज़ा, आप अब आप है, नेंगा द्ईस कना वंज़ूद, लेकते जीया ती ठृेता। बगरनी इना मैं रती है, मैं ना वाल कडर वाब के रेस्टीज का ख़ात हैं. तो आप एक आप तृित, मैं वोग में आप आमी द्खिली रहाके फक्टाड, ता थी लिए री विह्ड हैं और आप और सभ्दी ऍाब और वो गाँ ती वरग श्विद. बहुत लगक जाहल दानी और च्योंगि स्वसे ठने प्डुदा को गगहॆंगांगा रेगु रेक। but there is a fairly hefty section on social media. But I would say in short that it has had a initially liberating effect on politics. Making politicians more accessible to the general public, enhancing governmental accountability and the authorities accountability. Adding to transparency in the processes of governance. All of these are plus thing. यस स्वढो। का स्वलीट ख़ागिछ आजन्यी सब शबतांगी क्यडालागी और वो आजन्ग विड़ागी क्यडागिच्विद थी मेंगा तोसच़्वाण्या है ती मेंट्याश ती आघ्जातनागा है आसिन मिने ज़ी क्यजातनागा आपिन्यां आपने बचलीच्टन च ज़ाग़ी की सध्टेपाक आप नना सझकिब ज़ियाई में द्दचाज़र्यान साजबाई आप नहीं चर्चीग देगा क्यर्गाशाझराई. सच्ट्ठाचना काम शब लिएदा कुई च्टॉएगाखेग़ि यरे कान। । । । । । । को off, little lovely. Of you in favor of the jasmine revolution and the various Arab spring movements where enabled very much bought by social media and by television, satellite television made a lot of law the things possible, but the same thing happened in those countries. That it has created toxicity in the political culture of many parts of the world. अदबलेज शोड, अं सोरी तो कीप रड़नेंग तो तगोर बड़ एन वन अग एसे एस यो नोथ तद एन अमेरिकन क्रिटिक रोट असरबिकली ददद दी अंदिन तद इस तगोर शकोलड अमेरिकनज आद 700 दोलरस पर सकोलड लीवें इसाए दी एकशाक्त मनेच्री फिग च्यों यो भी वो स कोलड दद ब्रिटिष यो अगा वी सगोड यह लुनगें। लाण सकोलड ख़ुओलॉट hayas peaking in posh inlish enjoying London taking a break with a nice cup of tea, all that nice English stuff. जो aus of how to reconcile your critiques with the enjoyment that you've obviously gained from that. और दिडद और थदद एस लोड चोडॉए को नहीं ज़ल है। मसमें आद्टीी सावास है, जे उता सोंगा है.. उआगे वेशा है.. मैं उनकी जे सावास है.. भी और उगने आप ग़ड्छें को वहात के रहे हैं। नहीं ल्ही। आद्टी आप सावास, मैं आप देटी कॉआदी बास्वास। From the ignorance from many British people I would like them to be aware But as I've said in my own writings and speeches about my writings I've said you know we must forgive but we must not forget I think we need to know our history Just as any child ought to know the background of their parents or their grandparents or a sense of where they come from So most every society know about its past दो two hundred years of marked us too including the languages you and I speaking to each & the right now उज़े शी्वज़्ा अज़े ख़ाशा जो वेगाखाजी भूगा है गिज़े वोगाखागागे हैं उन्ह剿 है, आज़ी तुँ वोगाखागे उग़े वात आचना थे जब आक सें,काझ सो भी विर लगग of Britten ुभी में नम शम्बालिक्न, ।को दूम्टार्टे मुन्सबी आब परसच्च्यर मूअम मुन्सबी आप इज्टान की रिचाने ईच्तार ऑप लिएक जहाँ पकदे आप बार्थे kitchen ठाकरी वी में धीर दूम्टार्टे डीएक शाने गचाते। compared to that racial Brexit in 1947. वीबालिक और बाटिशन नहीं थी गुषशम वीब लिक एक वह दा त्वरचली है, रीली सकते है, मुस्झांने लाई लाईखें और नहीं की यह लिए बना हो रहे है, आज़िसं वीब इलगां।, ऐस्विशान। भी की वोपय मुस्चेड़िए, భాటా పారడిదా ఴారంమార నికాపిడిమిటరిసూ అందితా. తిస్రుట్చ్పార్డా. మఫిణితిమోషి నిసిఈక ఇప్దికి. మమరిరందిని మప్టిమదినా. जर्दिल इस्त्यकेँ बाउक वोडिल रतागगे हूँ देश्ढर देश्ढर मिन्दों। रषसमनाग्या बगी बगी खोलग, को तुज़ाक। करे आए और भो वो वाज्ट्पार्घ मुदपार्ड़ाद. आक वो वो वो वो वो वी बहुतागा च्तदाछाझा आप वे जगाद. तूए ईक वो वी दर मेंड़िय दूगात। ौ Israelंडवाअ मैंज लिंगविस्डेक ग्रूँप बी आद सवा धाम तो छगाँ All of One of Moon आख करता कि साध्या बलते गराईप यी सोब मुर्नात因為, वास आग़ लिंगविस्टेक गैधकोर था that, I have begun to realise how having this caste might not have been the best thing for India.gl of courseyou know, we are in the middle of languages become hot wire,live wire, topic in India with people in power suggesting that we scuttle English in favor of Hindi and so on.So, why don't you talk to us a little bit aboutwhat you think about the language cause the fact that we as a countryhave no language called Indian.I'm constantly being asked whether I teach my children Indian म्हार रडी मैं छोग आदा हैं देडार डूर कोंअ रहींमें है, प्र शहला ठाश्ट्याी मैंगें, विरुराडी आपटेदार को जब रची... और बाटेद क्चम आदंषाद, आप आप अपटेशेम वूदेसा दासे छूता मताद, ज़िर के जब गुजात होगी साव साव बरोचीन न सिस्सी अग़ादून थो आप अप गडादूँन के विने पण्रावाद. सावम्नि के गुजात देवा रागकाई कर दुदाने है. वो तुछ।, वो आप मुझे चोक्ड़ाद development. । । । । । । । अगर और जेएगे श्ववागरोगनेंगे मिस्वागरोगनेंगे इन घरीश़ नाज्वाई था वैसिप्ट्णेर्ज्ध अग्वागर तो थी ळिक्ध को godt तरcool मेरे थे अ कोएगोगनेंगे अग्शे या चौद्गोगनेंगे नाज्चंगे मैंथाज्गी कोईचवागरो� इसaksi भी अदी तभी वो देखा। लग नद आजी तभी गरजाने शेड़ करी लगा. बदवाल मोन ठी लीवों नहीं. लगा अओ़. जवा और लगी भी तब देखोँर आचा रँवाड़। मुझे अए वॉजा चदते की ऻ़ानी कहाँत बबाउगाला. तोनी इस्वादा खाधउ, ब्रहल्टी खाधउचा लीच वर्डीत कहाच ज़ा रही बहुट तुब आप से अबार। करज़ी निदी परतेंगे लाग करत्य। तो तच्चवर्सी कंडि नहां जिया और श्यउध़ी बीमाम प्रदते प्रड़ा के लगने जीवाने थी किया जागा लगने वो अगर की प्रटेज वो गब साज़ाव्या सऱा्फ्रे जाद को नहोंगे नाद आब आप से लगने वो भी आप थनलेगा आव गरिज आप बजे का सिलगए वो वो और वो उसलीग होती इंग्लिश as a link language and a third language which would be an Indian language from somewhere else other than your state. So in practice it meant that pretty much everyone learned English and Hindi in the urban areas, the big schools and certainly in Northern India. Nobody in the North bothered to learn a South Indian language and in some Southern states like Tamil Nadu they refused to learn Hindi. So it was honored in the breach but at least peace had been maintained by it until the BJP came and chose to stir up this particular pot again with all sorts of undesirable consequences. In fact in the 1960s when attempt was made to make Hindi the national language, there had been riots in which dozens of people were killed because of their protests over this particular issue. It's not a Pandora's box you wish to open again. So I think it's most unfortunate. I mean the fact is that Hindi is the language of almost 50% of the population just under but that too only if you assimilate so-called dialects of Hindi which are arguably languages in their own right like Mathili and Bhojpuri and so on. If you consider them all to be Hindi then you're about 48-49% but what about the other 51 and the big question is if you make Hindi the quote-unquote national language it'll mean that half your people or about half will be able to function in government and the judiciary and public life and every other way in the language which they have imbibed with their mother's milk and which they're most comfortable with and the other half will actually be completely disadvantaged. Whereas if you have English as a link language everyone is equally disadvantaged or advantaged and that is something which the sort of sense of alienation this will breed amongst the non-Hindi speakers is actually going to be colossal. So it's an issue you don't really need to open up because we were all getting along fine. Increasingly for example national institutions like the National Civil Service, the courts parliament permit you to use your language whatever it is. So in parliament today Hindi is widely heard far more than, I mean I'm told in the 1950s only English was spoken by every MP. Today the vast majority speak only Hindi. In fact we've reached a point where again after discarding an existing parliamentary convention you can ask a minister a question in English and get an answer in Hindi which has created some protests from southern Indian MPs and so on. But anyway so you've got that going and as long as you give the translator 24 hours notice you can speak in your mother tongue whatever it is. You can speak in Assamese, you can speak in Malayalam, you can speak in whatever you feel is best suited to express your ideas and the government, the parliament is obliged to find a translator if enough notice has been given and then the others can hear what you're saying through simultaneous interpretation. Actually going to one language is actually a retrograde step and I think it would disadvantage us very much in India. Worse it would be a severe jolt to Indian unity which I think is too precious to be monkey around with. Mr. Tharoor you know you say that your ideas matter more to you than your words and in fact I quote you you say as a writer I have been more concerned about the substance of what I had to say and the effectiveness of the way I say it than the actual words themselves. But in India your sort of dictionary like vocabulary has sort of defined you for many people to the extent in which if I ever tweet something with a word like crepuscular I normally get trolled with people saying who do you think you are? Tharoor you know I get those kind of responses all the time. And I never say true crepuscular. Well why? Anyway no but do you... I'm never awake at dawn. Do you worry at all that so in some ways that your legacy will end up being that of words of the guy with the fancy words rather than your ideas? Well that would be awful I'm sorry to say so please somebody here preserve my legacy. No I mean the thing is that I actually wrote that about my non-fiction writing. In fact with fiction I actually found myself saying to a lot of interviewers and so on that the telling of the tale is as important as the tale itself. And I prided myself that each of my novels experimented with a different narrative form and a different style and I'm proud of what I tried to do. Of course they all require words as well but I'm proud of what I tried to do in the sort of way of unfolding the three different novels I wrote as stories. But when it comes to non-fiction you really are trying to reach people directly and therefore if you use fancy words but your ideas don't reach them then you've actually failed at what you're trying to do. I'm not writing you know travelogues I'm writing largely political or historical or opinion kind of books and articles which are meant to strike home to people's minds and so that's where I said the ideas are more important. On this question of words it really is a joke that's gone out of hand. Actually for those of you who haven't lived in India or have been living in India under a rock what happened was that a few years ago when I was facing a sustained campaign of Columbian vilification from a certain section shall we say aided and abetted by their complicit allies in the media there was one particularly egregiously offensive series which was put out by a particularly egregiously offending television journalist and I was so angry with that he had launched a new channel and just wanted the TRP so he decided to make up his own facts and I've had to take him to court but the judicial process being what it is the case is still pending five years later but my moment of rage led me to issue an immediate tweet saying that this was an exasperating farago of lies and half-truths and outright lies being broadcast by a showman masquerading as a journalist something like that Farago to begin with is the word I'd used frequently since Stevens College in my debates in Delhi University it wasn't to me an unknown word but apparently it was because a few hours later there was a puzzled tweet from the Oxford English dictionary asking why suddenly a million Indians had looked up the meaning of the word Farago when I think the highest they'd ever had in any previous year was three or something so why was suddenly a million people looking it up and then there was some people didn't understand masquerading either but anyway that's another matter people started opening accounts calling themselves Mr. Farago and referring to me as Mr. Farago all sorts of things the whole thing got completely out of control and then they decided that this meant that I was somebody who used words that people didn't understand which I feel rather sorry for myself about because obviously I pride myself in communicating effectively and if you are going to communicate you will need to be understood so it was my foolishness that I hadn't realised that the world had moved on since I was at Stevens College Delhi University in the early 1970s having said all of this I then decided well you know if you're going to be tired and feathered with this you may as well enjoy it when shortly thereafter six months thereafter whatever my publishers wanted me to announce the imminent availability of my then new book The Paradoxical Prime Minister I tweeted that my new book The Paradoxical Prime Minister is shortly out etc. and it's far more than just a 400 page exercise in floxy norse inhalabilification which as some of you will know is a coinage from the 19th century meaning the act of estimating someone or something is worthless and that is precisely what I then explained to them but the thing caught on and I'm afraid little kids aged 3 and 4 were being wheeled out by their parents to recite floxy norse inhalabilification onto YouTube videos and onto in my presence if they ever met me and so on so it became a bit of a joke but then you know things like shortly thereafter too there was an episode where a politician who had been elected alongside us as part of an election campaign against the ruling party resigned and joined an alliance of the ruling party so I promptly tweeted the word of the day snalli gosta first usage US 1846 meaning and I gave the meaning a shrewd unprincipled politician latest usage today and I didn't have to mention him didn't have to mention his state didn't have to mention the incident and I'm pleased to say that I now hear snalli gosta being used a lot in Indian political commentary so these things happen in other words it was a joke that went out of hand a bit but I do hope people will remember the ideas and not just the words so I have done more questions some more in a sort of lighter vein and some more serious but I had somebody saying we only have 5 minutes left I'm not sure why that can't be right because we began you can give the answer I will open it up for a few questions and then hopefully get one concluding question before we really have to wind up this young gentleman in the front I think a mic is coming just wait for a second if you stand up she might know who to give the mic to and tell us how old you are as well please okay so my name is jijith I'm from west minst you can hold it closer to your lips jijith okay my name is jijith I'm from west minsta school and I'm 14 years old and my question is to do with the comment that you made that you scold the British of those days for colonizing India and doing things like that do you not think that we must also appreciate what they did in the terms of how they moulded the India that is today and how they influenced the structure and how we run things today in India well you should read my book in Glorious Empire which tells you why I don't believe there's anything to appreciate every single thing that you might appreciate today was created in India by the British to serve their own interests there was not one thing that actually was I mean the English language wasn't quote unquote given to the Indians they decided to teach a very small percentage of people just enough to serve as an intermediate class between the governors and the governed but they specifically decided not to teach the language to the vast masses that's one example the railways were built in order to extract goods from the Indian interior take them to the ports and ship them off to England part of the drain and loot of resources that had gone on and also to send troops into well any disturbances against the loot on the rape and so on and so forth it goes the courts were created to dispense British justice where murder is routinely committed by white colonial officials of their own servants were exonerated and the slightest hand raised by an Indian against a British colonialist usually ended up either in the news or transportation for life or other sorts of penalties there were very very different standards of justice from what the British like to imagine they stood for and everything is footnoted with scholarship and not just by Indian nationalists by serious scholars around the world so I'm sorry to say that I don't find very much to appreciate for that I think you can also have railways without going through the trouble and expense of being colonized it's much cheaper to just buy the damn things where are you oh hi sorry my name is Manjiri Gokhalezoshi this is I think our outstanding anchor for today Pallavi she started with the great Indian novel and this is a question which has dogged me since I read it a decade ago so it's a pleasure to ask you in the novel you've likened Nehru to Dhritrashtra as the man who had everything except vision and the one and only Indira Gandhi to Priya Duryodhani who signified pure pure evil nothing else in your own style I'm asking you this question has nobody in the congress party read this book and the second is in the same book you likened Shastri Lal Bahadur Shastri for dying I mean his only fault was that he died early like Pandu did and with him he stood for integrity as we all know do you think he was the last or is there it's not about the congress party or the BJP or any but in the Indian politician today does not stand for integrity do you think it died with him that's quite a question on that second question because there are people of integrity even today in Indian politics but whether they represent the norm or they are the exceptions I think your own question points to what the answer might be on the first one actually Dhritrashtra first of all it's a satirical novel so you're not supposed to take all these paddles totally literally the creative freedom of the novelist is precisely to be able to play with these metaphors and these ideas and so every character corresponds every character from the Mahabharata corresponds to something else in the 20th century politics of India but Dhritrashtra because he was blind and literally couldn't see he had no vision in the literal sense actually his depiction is having figuratively a huge vision the problem is that that vision is disconnected from ground reality because he can't see ground reality that was the conceit so it wasn't a wholly negative portrayal and the idea is most of these characters are complex I mean I'd like to think anyway that they are and that's one of the interesting things about the Mahabharata there are no pure heroes in the Mahabharata the original Mahabharata I mean there are gods with feet of clay there are humans who may be idealized in some respects but are deeply flawed in others within the same person so in those circumstances an epic which has room for that kind of doubt and insertitude about human beings which permits you to explore the complexities of human nature it seemed to me much more ready to lend itself to satire than say something like the Ramayana would be because the characters in it are worshipped literally by millions of people and you couldn't really do anything without tripping over into sacrilege in the Mahabharata you could because it's a very human one we almost got it a secular epic the gentleman with the glasses the lady as well perhaps just and the lady after him yeah we'll take both together you definitely have done an incredible job of anchoring this session we've seen Shashi several times over the last few years but this was I think really well matched so we hope to see you here again thank you I agree thank you Balini Shashi in the UK we're quite proud about our queen James Bond and quite prejudiced when it comes to who should play the queen or James Bond and we don't think an Indian an Indian from India could play James Bond so so you have a style an aura a Britishness almost an English gentleman and Tarool 007 yes my phone number ends with 007 with rather big words and you talk about preserving your legacy especially to be known for content and not just big words so if your biography were made into a film do you see an Indian playing you or would you look to the UK oh no that is so amusing thank you now I couldn't be 007 because I'm not sure I could shoot straight except when I speak then I do tend to be a straight shooter as much as possible but anyway short answer is you know your guess is as good as mine I don't think anyone's going to make a bio pick about me but if they do it should be an Indian Shashi sorry after that question there's a little bit more of a serious one so I think she was being very serious she probably was the name's Tarool Shashi Tarool but Pallavi I mean there's already a question discussion on the great Indian novel but one book of yours which I was very deeply affected by after I read the great Indian novel is surprisingly the one that's lesser known actually I have a copy of it with me the elephant, the tiger and the cell phone I love the book I mean especially because of the NRA perspective that it brought in and I deeply literally I was not yet it was my last year before moving to India exactly so you know I personally identified a lot with that as NRA you had come from Dubai to India and now I'm in the UK etc so but from that point of time I mean your perspective isn't that very fresh in my head to this book which is now pride, prejudice and punditry you know how has that perspective of both you as a person who's changed from then to now as well as your perspective on the world around which is now reflected in these essays because I have read reviews that you know there are certain changes in the whole thing but I'd like to hear your own thoughts on how that's changed from the elephant tiger and the cell phone days to the pride, prejudice and punditry days okay I'll try and be brief I mean I think elephant tiger and cell phone was a book written in 2007 it was actually the year that I had left the UN had not yet returned to India it was seeing India that cusp of heady optimism when everyone was expecting it to be this new sort of economic giant growing at the same time a thriving free market democracy in fact the American edition has a subtitle the next superpower or something like that I mean they really thought it was those are the words that were being bandied about at the time and so the transformation of the slow lumbering elephant of cliche this sprightly bounding tiger that was emerging that was what was about and the cell phone was the instrument that seemed to embody I was fortunately right about the cell phone in fact all the numbers in the book are out of date because we kept breaking the world record for the number of cell phones sold and the number of users and so on right through and today we have something like 900 million cell phone users in India but I think the things that have changed are the things that I least expected to see change because I came back to an India that in essence in spirit was still the India grown up in there were superficial changes much more consumerist society than before lots of foreign goods available that were unavailable when I was growing up in India all of that stuff but those were essentially superficial ones essentially India was still the same sort of country everyone trying to get along everyone of course on the make for themselves trying to you know either get out of the way of the government there's still that famous line India grows at night when the government is asleep I mean that was happening you had all that heavy excitement and there was really democracy was even more successful and effective than before people were freer the media was brighter and more independent institutions that seemed to be incipient when I left to go abroad 34 years previously had now become flourishing and now there are more effective autonomous institutions that has all that has changed dramatically and it's changed specifically in the last eight years where you're seeing a country where all sorts of things that I would say were unimaginable to me both when I left and when I returned to my country has now become possible things that used to be inconceivable that people would even utter behind the privacy of their closed doors are now being declaimed from public platforms the history of hatred of verbal violence against people against minorities and other communities we are seeing the hollowing out of institutions we are seeing a coward and complacent media we are seeing all sorts of developments that almost represent a reversal of what in 2007 I would have seen as the trends to celebration India now is it irreversible again if such a major thing can be reversed we can perhaps put it back on track again but it requires the Indian public and the Indian voter to decide they want it back on another track or whether they're happy with the way the country is going today but the fact that it's different, no doubt about it I think we have time for one more question before I'll wrap up Is it out? Okay, hi I just wanted to ask you a question because I came across I'm an artist but I came across someone asking me because I said I'm Indian and then they were like why don't you identify as your ethnicity because I'm from the northeast from a tribe called the Pnars and so I wanted to I didn't have an answer to that and I wanted to know if you have an answer to why certain people won't say they're Indian but they would say they're Punjabi or Pnars or like Assamese well what was special about India was you could be both you see I mean you could be a good Bengali Muslim and a good Indian all of the same time if you want it to be and each identity mattered to you more in different context if you were in a gathering of people from your states you might identify more as a Bengali if you were going to the mosque for a prayer you might identify more as a Muslim if you're meeting in a mixed gathering or at a university or a school you might identify you by a national thing so people can be all of those things many things and one thing all of the same time and what gave us all the security to be secure in these multiple identities was the sheltering carapace of the Indian identity so you can say I'm from Meghalaya or I'm from the northeast or I'm a Kashi or I'm a Jantia whatever it is that you know tribally you may want to identify with if you go to church you might say you're a Christian if you go to a temple you might say you're a Hindu in those contexts but we will ask you which country you're from you should say you're Indian and I think we would all of us all Indians here would be equally comfortable embracing all these identities that's what I talk about the diversity the pluralism of India and that embodies that Balavi you know so many questions left including I wanted you to tell me about your adventures and being the sexiest voted the sexiest vegetarian or something like that but I don't think we have time for that today that was several kilos ago I'm afraid this is the hottest vegetarian actually not the sexiest vegetarian but you know I think a lot of us have this question because you are a member of the congress party and that is the opposition and as you said we're at this inflection point in India today where we're seeing this old pluralistic idea of India come under attack and we're seeing a very different India of gaining ground and we see a very sort of absent opposition so I mean to end with if I could just ask you like with the congress the answer is I don't know and I think the public of India will have to decide that I feel it's a bit unfair to speak about an absent opposition because the opposition is there struggling to make itself heard and there are various reasons why it isn't heard very much part of it may be its own fault part of it is also the fact that the media may not give it what the space it deserves the fact that social media is dominated by agents of the ruling party and its ideology there are various factors and of course we have seen a splintering of the opposition in the last couple of elections which mean that there are now 46 parties represented in parliament BJP has a majority all by itself and then there's a one person party a two MP party that sort of thing all over the place and no behemoth the government with constituting an immediate alternative that is the problem if you like rather than an absent opposition it's a fragmented opposition that we have and I think the congress is quite capable of being and serving as the linchpin of an alternative I think clearly in the way things are right now it cannot hope alone to take on the government the BJP and its majority but if it were to more effectively make common cause with other parties including parties which are regional parties anchored in specific states but which broadly share the sort of simplified I can say the broad sort of social democratic principles in which the congress party is anchored center or slightly center left then that I think is certainly the way forward and the realistic alternative for the voters of India then would be a choice between a BJP dominated government as we've seen for the last two terms or a coalition of very many parties centered around the congress party that's the best I can say at this point but there are two years to go and I think a lot of ferment in the opposition space right now let's see how it all works out so on that note I hope this has given you a lot of food for thought please put your hands together big round of applause Shashi Tharoor Thank you Pandavi