The Justuju for Urdu

One of the greatest concerns us as a graduating generation (and by graduating I mean societally), is the alienation of the Urdu language. Most of us went to school where we weren't allowed to converse in Urdu apart from the one Urdu class we had a few times a week. That is roughly 2.25 hours of urdu every week and 9 hours every month- of speaking urdu academically. That compared to the English we were taught which amounts to over a hundred hours of English! It's no wonder most of us struggle to find the right words to say, and would prefer communicating in English anyday. Those of us who speak Urdu at home still have a little saving grace, but what about those who speak regional languages at home? That, and then mandatory English in school sadly left very little room for Urdu.

I have personally run miles in the opposite direction when it came to academic Urdu (despite having it in my A levels might I add), until I landed a five year course which used Urdu as the main medium. Two years into said course, I keep trying to address my discomfort with the language.

That's how 'Urdu Justuju' came about. Varisha and I spent a lot of time, with the help of our Urdu Tutor, trying to come up with a program that helps younger students become comfortable with, and dare I say, actually form a love for the language. We put together different themes, games, and exercises that essentially unschool what has become of Urdu today.

Our first batch was a group of very happy Urdudaans, who could now crack a joke, express an opinion with confidence, and easily switch back and forth between Urdu and English. We got great feedback from the students and parents both. The best thing was to hear their disappointment towards the end of the program because they wanted to come in thori aur der ke liye!