Presentation made in June 2016 in the Faculty of Art - Faculdade de Letras - Lisbon, Portugal Docente: Professor Shiv Kumar

1. नमस्ते [namaste]
Why learn Hindi?

2. In Business, infomation technology, science or
digital media, India has an increasingly important
presence globally.
Corporations looking to expand their operations
and sales to the South Asian region
Government sector as or as a Foreign Service.

3. Indian culture has begun to permeate Western culture, into
other languages.
Have you ever been to an Indian/Nepalese restaurant?
Western film and music are increasingly influenced by Indian
traditions. Indian films (“Bollywood”) are the second most
prolific in the world, behind Hollywood.

4. Knowledge of Hindi opens doors to the study of poetry,
philosophy, sacred texts, and song that is rare for Westerners.
Hindi is a beautiful, ancient, elegant, and expressive language.
Hindi is spoken by some 366 million people worldwide. Hindi is
considered to be the fourth most spoken language in the world.
Travelling through India and learning its culture is more
meaningful when you can communicate in Hindi.

5. Hindi is one of the oldest languages in the world and is one of the easiest and most
logical languages to read, write, and pronounce.
The grammar of Hindi is very easy and similar to grammars of European languages.
Hindi and Urdu are generally considered to be the same language written in two
different scripts.
The Devanagari script of Hindi is employed to write several other languages in
South Asia, including Nepali, Marathi, and Sanskrit.
So learning these scripts gives you access to many more languages than simply
Hindi and Urdu.

6. Guru, jungle, karma, yoga,
bungalow, cheetah, looting,
pyjama, thug avatar.
कच्चा पापड़-पक्का पापड़
[kachcha papad-pakka papad]
Uncooked papadum-cooked papadum

7. कर भला हो भला
[kar bhala ho bhala] (literally: do good, will be good)
Do good and good will come to you
जैसा करोगे वैसा भरोगे
[jaisa karoge waisa bharoge] (literally: what you do, you pay)
You reap what you sow
बंदर क्या जाने अदरख का स्वाद
[bandar kya jane adrakh ka swad]
A monkey doesn't know the taste of ginger
Meaning: Those who don't know, can't appreciate
थोथा चना बाजे घना
[thotha chana baje ghana]
A hollow lentil makes more noise
Meaning: Those who are not capable of delivering, talk more
बहती गंगा में हाथ धोना
[bahti ganga me hath dhona]
To wash one’s hand in the river (Ganges)
Meaning: To be an opportunist

8. [Teacher: Cricket match par lekh likho.
Sab likh rahe the, magar ek student baitha tha
Teacher: Kyon baithe ho?
Chhatr: Likh liya.
Teacher: Kya?
Chhatr: Barish ho gayee, match radd.]
Teacher: Write an essay on a cricket match.
All pupils started writing except one.
Teacher: Why are you sitting?
Student: I've finished the essay.
Teacher: What did you write?
Student: "Due to rain, no match.”

9. [Santa: Kelaa kitne mein?
Falwala: 1 rupaye.
Santa: 60 paise mein doge?
Falwala: Itne me to sirf kele kaa chhilkaa milegaa.
Santa: Ye lo 40 paise, mujhe bas kelaa chahiye.]
Santa: How much is a banana?
Grocer: 1 rupee.
Santa: Would you sell it for 60 paise?
Grocer: You could only get the skin of the fruit for that price.
Santa: Take 40 paise, just give me the banana, (and keep the skin).
[Santa: Patahai, bachpan mein mujhe ek bus ne dhakka maar diya tha.
Banta: Baap re, tu mar gaya kibacha?
Santa: Yaad nahi. main tab chaar saal ka tha.]
Santa: I was hit by a bus when I was a child, you know.
Banta: Oh my god, did you die or survive?
Santa: I don't remember, I was only four then.