I think what you've got to realise is that in India English actually provides the grease that oils the wheels between areas that speak completely different languages. It is (or was, anyway) the officialese language. I know they were thinking about making Hindi the official language but the body count would be massive if they tried to enforce it.

Indians think nothing of intermixing their own language plus English, and they do it so seamlessly that even when they are talking among themselves they don't even notice when they do it. I have a bunch of contractor from India working across the cube farm from me. One is Sri Lankan (from Tamil Nahdu, though), one is from Madras and the others are from northern India. They don't have a single language in common except English - of a sort. When they speak it among themselves it is virtually impossible to understand. They have to change mental gears to talk to us. They slow down and they consciously add back in all the parts of speech they don't bother themselves with when they are talking to each other.

The thing that really bugs me is the shaking of the head to signify agreement.


The idiot also known as Capfka ...