Nagpur, Mohan Bhagwat, the Sarsanghchalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), has expressed deep concern over what he described as the progressive “decay” of India’s linguistic heritage, warning that many Indians no longer command their own mother tongues and are increasingly reliant on English even in private conversation.
Speaking at the launch of a book during the National Book Festival in Nagpur, Mr Bhagwat said: “We have reached a stage where we have even forgotten our mother tongue. There are Indians today who do not know their own language.”
He argued that while he does not oppose English-medium education, families should at least speak their native language at home. “If we use our language within our homes, we will automatically gain complete mastery over it,” he observed.
Drawing attention to the expressive limitations of English when translating culturally loaded Sanskrit or Indian-language concepts, Mr Bhagwat cited the term kalpa-vriksha (the mythical wish-fulfilling tree). “In English one writes various phrases — ‘wish-fulfilling tree’, ‘tree of plenty’ — yet none captures the depth of the original. Foreign languages cannot reach the profundity of our culture,” he said.
The RSS chief recalled an era when Sanskrit served as the medium of everyday communication across much of India and noted with regret that today American professors often teach the language to Indian students. He called for serious national introspection on linguistic consciousness and urged greater efforts to strengthen Indian languages.
In a related address the previous day at the same festival, Mr Bhagwat challenged Mahatma Gandhi’s assertion in Hind Swaraj (1909) that India lacked unity before British rule. Describing the claim as a “false narrative” implanted by colonial education, he argued that India’s conception of nationhood is ancient and fundamentally different from Western models.
Mr Bhagwat’s remarks come amid wider debates on language policy, education and cultural identity in India, where English continues to dominate higher education, corporate employment and elite discourse, even as several states push for greater use of regional languages in schools and administration.
