Radio for the Millions by Isabel Huacuja Alonso

Author:Isabel Huacuja Alonso
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: PER008010, Performing Arts/Radio/History & Criticism, SOC052000, Social Science/Media Studies
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Published: 2023-01-03T00:00:00+00:00

Language as Transmission

As we might expect, Nidā conflates language with religion in the most overt possible manner. In the absence of visual clues, the characters’ diction becomes the most important signifier of communal identity. We know that Mahashay is Hindu because he speaks “Hindi” and uses Sanskrit-derived words, and we know that Mian is Muslim because he speaks polished “Urdu” and not only employs Arabic- and Persian-origin words, but also pronounces them correctly. As Urdu speakers put it, Mian’s “sheens” and “qafs” were impeccable.

Still, it is notable that at no point do the characters have trouble communicating. Mahashay sprinkles in a few difficult Sanskrit words here and there, but that does not stop Mian from perfectly understanding what Mahashay has to say. Nor does it stop Mahashay from conveying the program’s message to the Urdu- and Punjabi-speaking audience in Lahore and Karachi. Indeed, the play’s writer, Naseer Anwar, received a great deal of praise for his command of Hindi. For instance, Rais Ahmad, a Pakistani listener and fan of this program, explained: “The strangeness of the language did not make it difficult to listen to it and enjoy it. On the contrary, it made it more enjoyable.”83 Another listener remarked: “From the program you could tell that the writer was very aware of Hindu traditions. The language was beautiful, and I wanted it to last longer.”84 Intizar Hussain, a celebrated Urdu writer, explained in an article: “The Hindi that Nazir Anwar would write—now nobody else can do.”85 Most interesting, in Nidā, the demarcation of linguistic and national difference between Urdu and Hindi hinges upon the audience’s familiarity with Hindi. It is noteworthy that the strongest expressions of Urdu-Hindi hostility, and in this case, Indian-Pakistani hostility in the 1965 war, depend on the intimate familiarity of Hindi. In Nidā, the listeners’ audioposition, between the two main characters, Mian and Mahashay, creates a feeling that we are listening in or prying into a private conversation. That prying, however, depends on intelligibility between the two characters and between the audience and the characters.

Naseer Anwar also uses language to demonstrate Mian’s cultural and linguistic superiority. Ultimately, Nidā is a linguistic feud between Mahashay (India) and Mian (Pakistan), and in every episode, Mian wins the battle of the tongue. Mahashay mispronounces the first name of India’s own vice president calling him “Jakir instead of Zakir.” Mahashay cannot even say the name of the region that he claims rightfully belongs to India. Again and again, Mahashay says “Kasmir” instead of “Kashmir.” It is clear that these are not just mispronunciations but rather are markers of Urdu-speakers’ linguistic superiority.

What goes unspoken, but is impossible to miss, is that Nidā is deeply invested in presenting Urdu as the sole and rightful national language of Pakistan, countering East Pakistan’s claims that Bengali should be a joint national language. Herein lies what was perhaps Nidā’s most important message. In the play, Mian repeatedly tells radio listeners: “This is the voice of Pakistan.” Mian’s statement echoes the first governor-general of Pakistan,

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