Vishal Jethwa has been travelling the world since last year with his Oscar-shortlisted film Homebound. But one thing that he has maintained throughout the promotions, be it in India or abroad, is his connection with the Hindi language. On World Hindi Day, he reflects on it and says, “I feel proud of representing India and Hindi globally.”
Elaborating on it, the actor says, “To speak your own language in a foreign country, it feels very good. Wherever possible, I try to speak in Hindi. In fact, when I met Martin Scorsese (Hollywood filmmaker, who is also the executive producer on Homebound), I also made him say Namaste. That is how we take our culture forward.”
Vishal admits that it used to bother him and make him feel awkward not knowing English well initially in the film industry, as it was seen as a sign of high education and status. But eventually he learnt to accept himself as he is. “I used to have a lot of trouble with the fact that I did not know English. But slowly I realised that the language in which most people speak in our nation is Hindi. After that realisation, as much as I started speaking in Hindi, I saw a lot of acceptance coming for me in people, and I am very confident in it,” he says, adding, “My sister told me that language is just a medium of communication. And if you are more comfortable speaking in Hindi, then why not speak in Hindi. If the language spoken in our country is Hindi, then we should be proud of our language. We should always be proud of our things, our values, our tradition. And I think there should be no shame in speaking Hindi anywhere.”
{{/usCountry}}Vishal admits that it used to bother him and make him feel awkward not knowing English well initially in the film industry, as it was seen as a sign of high education and status. But eventually he learnt to accept himself as he is. “I used to have a lot of trouble with the fact that I did not know English. But slowly I realised that the language in which most people speak in our nation is Hindi. After that realisation, as much as I started speaking in Hindi, I saw a lot of acceptance coming for me in people, and I am very confident in it,” he says, adding, “My sister told me that language is just a medium of communication. And if you are more comfortable speaking in Hindi, then why not speak in Hindi. If the language spoken in our country is Hindi, then we should be proud of our language. We should always be proud of our things, our values, our tradition. And I think there should be no shame in speaking Hindi anywhere.”
{{/usCountry}}Being called a Hindi film actor is also something that brings a feeling of pride for Vishal. But he acknowledges how many actors, especially in the younger generation, are not well versed with the language. “Even after working in the Hindi film industry, many people don't know Hindi. I see an issue there. How will you connect with the audience? It’s like if I am working in Hollywood and not knowing English,” he insists, adding, “For a Hindi film actor, to be fluent in Hindi language is very important. If you don't know Hindi, then you haven't done the work that you should. If you don't know it, you must improve it. Maybe it's not the language you grew up around with, but it is the language you are working in. So, you need to learn it. There can be no negotiation in this.”