Junk-Urdu Phenomenon

I am a regular viewer of “ARY DIGITAL” and other Urdu TV channels in the UK and feel they provide a valuable service to the Pakistani community Worldwide. However, what disappoints me is the widespread use on these channels of what can only be described as D.I.Y. Junk-Urdu, by which I mean discussions using Urdu and English words, phrases and sentences that have been concocted together. I feel this practice is an insult to Urdu as it gives an impression of an incomplete and second-class dying language. It is particularly embarrassing when our children who are born and brought up in the UK ask us why Urdu words are so frequently substituted with that of English. Are we so embarrassed by our own language that we feel we must make it more fashionable?

From a historical perspective, Urdu is a Lashkari language; therefore, we are led to believe that the pasting in of English words and phrases into Urdu is acceptable. Whatever Lashkari may mean, it definitely does not mean replacing its genuine words and phrases with English (a European language) words and phrases. For example: ham Discussion ko Break ka baad Continue rakhain gay, main aik sou Fifty (150) pounds Donate daiata houn, Please, Uncle ko ye Message Deliver kar daina, Aap nai Weight ko Put on kar dia hai, etc. -- To me these sentences sound nothing more than comic straplines.

I do understand, however, that if a word does not exist in Urdu, then we can import a relevant word from another language, remodel it if needs be and embed it into our own language. There is history to it and there are several such English words in Urdu to date. However, this free for all tearing down at the fabric of Urdu is not Lashkari, it is in my opinion vandalism on a large scale.

Aeroplane was not invented in Pakistan or India and yet we have the words Jahaz and Tayara? Were our ancestors smarter than us and protective of the shafafness of the Urdu language that they went to great lengths in finding Jahaz and Tayara words for the European word ‘aeroplane’?

Did we ever wonder what were the Urdu words for “minute” and “second” before we replaced them with these English words, and did you ever notice that the TV hosts and the newscasters are trying desperately to replace the Urdu word “Vaqfa” with the English word “Break” !


I fear that our society is suffering from an identity crisis and is generating two distinct classes; the educated and celebrity class who speak Junk-Urdu and proudly speak English believing somehow it is their mother tongue and national language; and the left over class who is there to speak Urdu, Punjabi, Pushto, etc.

Let us look at the Pakistani film and TV industry, which is the main culprit for peddling words like Daddy, Mummy, Uncle, Auntie, Good Morning, Bye, OK, Please, Welcome back, Thank you, Happy birthday complete with its sing along jingle, etc. In doing so it is damaging the true Urdu culture and enticing people to copy its manhoose practices and drive the society likewise. As I see it, the industry is promoting a ‘Hunse kee chaal’ culture, with the sad consequence that: ‘Kawa apni chaal bhi bhool raha ha’.

I fear that the mindless mixing of Urdu and English languages is going on at such a pace that it will kill Urdu dead. The English language has already downgraded several languages; Urdu will not be an exception. We desperately need a way forward to protect Urdu.

I believe it is the moral responsibility of the management of the TV channels to do their bit by developing a well-constructed policy, with the aim of raising awareness of the JUNK-URDU amongst their staff and to tackle this fast growing problem in the Pakistani society. I also believe it is the moral responsibility of the navigators of the country and its society such as teachers, poets, writers, painters, singers, comedians, filmmakers and media drivers (ARY, PTY, etc), to draw the line, and correct the course of Urdu towards protecting its shafafness. We must not leave it to the politicians as their hands are full running the country.

We must be proud of our Urdu language. It is our national language, it is our identity and it bonds us together.

A Proposal

A majority of Pakistani people who live outside of Pakistan, use Urdu programmes on TV as a means of brushing up and maintaining their national language and identity. Programmes designed to specifically teach Urdu would be a welcome and much needed addition to the weekly T.V. diet currently available. It may also help to discourage the Junk-Urdu phenomenon.