The best ways to learn Hindi fast!
If it were a numbers game, Hindi would be the second most important language to learn after Chinese. This is because Hindi is the second most widely spoken language in the world with over 500 million speakers. Hindi is spoken not only in India, but also in South Africa, Botswana, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Apart from these countries, there are a large number of Indians spread all over the world, which means that you will not have a hard time finding Hindi speakers.
Hindi is a musical language. Words are crisp and musical when spoken. Bollywood, the giant of Indian cinema, has brought Hindi music and cinema to the whole world and this popularity has made people all over the world feel a great need to learn Hindi. Aside from cultural appreciation of Hindi, knowledge of Hindi can also be beneficial in an economic sense. India has increasingly made its economic presence felt in recent years as a rising nation. Massive development projects are underway in India which would be very attractive for foreign investors and contractors to join. Knowledge of Hindi would be highly beneficial to these potential investors. Indians are also moving to other countries with their development projects and knowledge of Hindi would be helpful for the locals to deal directly with them. India is also the largest provider of BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) and data entry analysts, due to its large population and cheap labor. Knowledge of Hindi would be of great help in educating these outsourcing staff on the exact nature of the work required, to negotiate terms and avoid misunderstandings.
While the importance of learning Hindi would already be clear, let’s see what it takes to learn the language. First of all, Hindi is one of the easiest languages to learn. While the term ‘easy’ is always a relative term, which can vary greatly from one individual to another, generally speaking, Hindi is perceived to be an easy language to learn. The words are easy to pronounce and read, while the grammar is not that complicated. The first step is to get a great Hindi course, preferably an audio based course that helps you with the pronunciation of the words, because learning the correct pronunciation of the words is very important. This is something no textbook course can offer. Once you find a great course to start your learning, remember that the most important aspect of learning Hindi is persistence. This is true for any language for that matter. You need to be consistent in your learning efforts. That’s why ten to fifteen minutes each day works better than a three-hour study session on the weekend. You need to continually refresh your memory of the language you are learning and this will help you make steady progress towards your goal of becoming fluent in the language.
A great way to learn a lot of Hindi vocabulary is by watching Hindi movies. Even people who can’t read or write Hindi know at least a few Hindi words by watching Hindi movies. In fact, watching movies will help you identify the correct pronunciation of Hindi words and the proper application of words in different situations. You will find words like ‘kaun’ which means who, ‘peyar’ which means love and ‘khya’ which means why is there so much talk in movies. Since Hindi movies are usually full of action with a dash of romance, the dialogues will be short and the meanings being spoken will be quite easy to understand even for someone who has no knowledge of Hindi at all. You can also listen to Hindi music and radio shows. It’s all about training your ear for the language!
Another fun way to improve your pronunciation is to pick your favorite movie quotes and practice saying them! It may sound funny to those around you, but your Hindi pronunciation will improve by leaps and bounds! Find Hindi books or newspapers that you can read. While you may not be able to understand most of it, over time you will be able to understand much of what is written. Start with the sports page or comics section which would have relatively simple language, then try to understand the headlines. Beware though, some newspaper headlines contain an element of ambiguity that even a native would find difficult to understand. So if you plan to learn Hindi solely by reading newspapers, it’s probably not such a bright idea. You should read newspapers to supplement your learning and build on what you learn through your language course, not as a replacement for the language course.
A great way to memorize the new Hindi words you learn is to write them down on cards that you can keep in your pocket and take with you wherever you go. Whenever you find a few free minutes, like when you’re waiting in line at a store or at a bus stop, flip through the cards and you’ll incorporate these new words into your vocabulary. After all, learning a language is about consistency. You need to constantly update your knowledge or you will be lost.
For an excellent audio-based, interactive, tailor-made Hindi course to improve your pronunciation, visit the link below. Good luck learning Hindi!
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