Shantaram Language & Communication Quotes

Lin doesn't speak German, and he takes it personally when Ulla (German) and Karla (Swiss) speak in their native language. Whether it's an "accident" or intentional, the mix of languages will become a part of his everyday life living among the exiles in Bombay.

Can this be true? Well, we checked, and it would seem to be true. So the statement that living in a Tower of Babel like Bombay would be like living in the center of the world makes lots of sense. How could you forget you live in a global community when you can't understand the grand majority of what's being said around you?

Politics can be an idealistic field that allows people to find mutually beneficial solutions to problems, or it can be used as a tool to create division. One of the most natural ways to divide groups up is by what language they speak. As Didier points out, it's a widely-used tactic by Indian political parties.

It might be hard to learn German, French, or Spanish, not to mention something like Latin. But just try picking up Hindi, where even the letters and numbers are different. No faking your way by pronouncing words you don't know the meaning of; here you have to learn a whole new alphabet.

Okay, let's get this straight. Lin is a tourist. Prabaker is his guide. They're going on a tour of the "dark side" of Bombay, including to the slave market. So why isn't Lin considered a tourist? Well, because he's gone the extra mile and learned not only Hindi, but also the super-local language of Marathi. It's like knowing a secret password.

Think Didier's off his rocker? Well, au contraire and c'est la vie; the old Frenchman is right. English doesn't only borrow French phrases like "Touché." About one third of English words come from the language.

Get a group of foreigners together and the fun language mistakes will come rolling in. In this case it's Ulla, mistaking toad for toe. It makes us think that a lot of language is really arbitrary—why shouldn't he be a toe? They're stinky, a trait that toads don't share, last time we checked.

Karla's "breakthrough" is about feeling like she fits in in Bombay. She's a foreigner, and looks and acts differently than native women in her adopted city. But by learning Hindi, one of the city's native languages, she unlocks the door into society and finally feels at home.

Poor Prabaker. It's hard to imagine that Lin doesn't sound just as silly when he's trying to speak Hindi or Marathi, but since he's the narrator he doesn't let us in on that fact. Instead, he just paints Prabaker's English as funny, mocking and copying his funky plurals and extra it's.

A-ha. Communication isn't all about spoken language. As in a high five, or a rad secret handshake, a lot can be communicated through gestures. Lin points out the head-wiggle as one of those gestures he learns in India.