For Ammaji, it’s not quite Hindi or Haryanvi

A month back, Na aana is des Laado invoked the ire of the Haryana government which objected the events depicted in is Colors show. The Haryana Chief Minister had sent a letter to the I & B ministry asking them to take action against the channel and the production if they didn’t refrain from showing objectionable content. To avoid getting into a muddle, the channel had then advocated the show’s actors to not use Haryanvi language and instead speak in Hindi. Looking at the show in the last few weeks, there’s been a change in the language but a few characters still continue to speak in the same vein. Prominent among them is the antagonist Ammaji. Meghna Malik, who essays this character, begs to differ. “We’re obeying the notice. After all, we’re in the business of entertainment and care should be taken that no sentiments are hurt. We have stuck to the accent of the dialect. For example, earlier, I sued to say ‘aade aa’ but now I have to say andar aaja. The words are in Hindi but the intonation remains the same,” said Malik. So it is not quite Hindi or Haryanvi? “Look, you can’t show an illiterate rural lady speaking in pure Hindi now. We have to maintain the regional touch. It’s difficult to perform now because you are used to speaking in that vein for over seven months. Many a times I fumble and the director tells me to use the Hindi word. One thing that we haven’t compromised is the expressions. Sentiment can be hurt through words but no one raises objections over expression,” concludes Ammaji.