Chatting with Your Local Sabzi Vala Posted by Rachael on Jun 27, 2019
While visiting or living in India, you’ll find that a lot of shopping (खरीदारी/khareedaaree) for basic items – such as fruit, vegetables, toiletries, clothing, etc. – can be done by buying goods from local vendors who specialize in a particular item. Although you always have the option of going to a grocery store or superstore…
Summer Traditions Posted by Rachael on Jun 21, 2019
As yesterday was the longest day of the year in terms of daylight hours (or Summer Solstice), which many people consider as ushering in the true intensity of summer (गर्मी/garmi or ग्रीष्म/greesham), I thought it would be fitting to discuss some of my summer reminiscences (याद/यादें, yaad/yaade, sing/plural) from the time I spent in Rajasthan…
Fighting for Equality Posted by Rachael on Jun 6, 2019
As you may have heard, actor (अभिनेता/abhinetaa) Ayushman Khurana (आयुष्मान खुराना) will soon appear in a major film called Article 15, which is set to release on June 28th. As the title suggests, the film concerns “Article 15” of the Indian constitution (भारतीय संविधान/bhaaratiya samvidhaan), which guarantees equality to all citizens (नागरिक/naagrik) regardless of personal…
The Man Who Made Pads Possible Posted by Rachael on May 30, 2019
In earlier blogs, I’ve mentioned how watching TV and movies in Hindi can greatly accelerate the progress of your learning. As you immerse yourself more and more in the world of Hindi-language materials, you’ll find that you will start picking up on vocabulary (शब्दावली/shabdaavali), grammatical structures (व्याकरण की बनावटें/vyaakaran ki banaavate) and pronunciation (उच्चारण/ucchaaran) much…
Hinglish in Advertising Posted by Rachael on May 24, 2019
As you delve deeper into your Hindi studies (हिंदी की पढ़ाई/Hindi ki parhaai), you’ll notice that English (अँग्रेज़ी/angrezi) continues – for better or worse – to make extensive inroads into the Hindi language. This is true in casual conversation (बातचीत/baatcheet), especially amongst young, urban and educated people but also among the population as a whole…
Days of the Week in Hindi Posted by Rachael on May 16, 2019
One of the first concepts you are taught in any language class are the “days of the week.” While this may entail a simple explanation in other languages, the days of the week in Hindi are rife with meaning due to their connections with Hinduism and astrology. Although many young people in India today may…
Echo Words in Hindi Posted by Rachael on May 8, 2019
While learning Hindi, you may have noticed a phenomenon known as “echo words.” This grammatical structure is fairly common and informal and most often consists of an established word, such as “चाय/chaay” (tea) and a made-up word that rhymes with it (the most common example in this case is “वाय/vaay”) that adds a more general…