It was just clipping not a complete session. Wait for a month or so for complete session to be uploaded on Rekhta’s website.
They shown the part where he said that languages need to evolve with the passage of time. The reality of all languages of sub-continent is simple. Languages flourish if they got economic usage. None of sub-continent’s language have that strength as English. So in a way, all languages are in danger at different level (those which got no script, no patronage are in more danger). Some got newspapers, news channels, publishing houses and all. But English is being used for official purposes.
If you have time, go through this session with Javed Akhtar in last year’s Jashn e Rekhta. He states how economics affected beauty and vocabulary of Urdu.
Urdu language might be doing alright but script is on the way out, may be except in Deccan and around some religious seminaries like Deoband and all. The total circulation of all Urdu newspaper combines is definately not equal to say one Hindi newspaper like Dainik Jagran.
The languages which are institutionalized, by this I mean those which are taught in school for 10 years are there to stay and Tulu, Kodava, Bhili, Santhali and all will be out of speakers in another 100 years unless not institutionalized, for instance Arabic is in 8th schedule but is as dead as Sanskrit in India because it is hardly taught anywhere.
India as whole gives most importance to English than to mother tongue, you can always see every Indian family trying to speak to its kid in English rather than mother tongue in Urban area. It is like Pakistani Punjabis speaking Urdu to appear civilized only thing is Punjabis went to extreme by not teaching it in school
Arabic is not in Eighth schedule of the constition
There are quite more number of Urdu newspapers (in Urdu script) published in northern India than in Deccan. On what basis you say it is only used in Deccan that too in deoband seminaries. Read about Madrasa and Sanskrit boards.
Compare readership of Urdu newspapers with Gujrati, Gurmukhi or Malyalam. Also see it it’s total readership is more than that of Dainik Jagran, please let me know.
I studied Sanskrit from class 6th to class 10th. It is being taught not only in schools and colleges of India but also in many countries. More than thousand instituions in Germany teach Sanskrit.
As Muqawwee said State’s patronage matters alot. Importance of Eighth schedule cannot be ignored. Govt. release funds, organise fests, promote literature, assigns market value too. It helps languages to survive.
Long ago I read a debate in which I saw students are not enthusiastic to learn languages like Tulu in secondary or higher level. They prefer English because it has more market value. Yet we have two and three language system. Govts have taken efforts to teach mother languages in schools.
