Learning English In A Different Way
It is not so often that we hear about unusual therapies. How many times have we heard about a doctor prescribing "Song therapy" to a patient suffering from a psychological imbalance ? Or, has any of us heard things like "Snake Message Therapy" for removing body ache ? Likewise, have we ever been asked to visit a "Beer Spa" to rejuvenate ourselves ? Though some people might have heard about "Urine Therapy" for better health, has anyone heard about "Ear Candling" as some kind of solution to get tranquility in life ? However though, therapies are often weird. The topic for today is to take a look at one such unusual therapy. In the end, it might be so that it does not remain so unusual after all! Let us see!
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Some time back, or....... apologies! Long time back, I had trouble to get going with speaking in English. Then, my grandpa stepped in. He was full of ideas on how to get me going. Among many other things, he prescribed me a therapy that indeed became the game-changer for me. It was, to watch cricket and follow cricket commentary.
Dr Narottam Puri -- the famous cricket commentator, and a legendary television figure too -- was a technician excelling in suave words. His diction was always perfect and his presentation was right on the dot. A door opened for me - to explore English and to imitate a certain speaking style.
Then came the doyen - the evergreen Richie Benaud. I do not remember when I heard him for the first time. But it must have been during a series 'Down Under'. Always constructed in rich English, Richie Benaud delivered words in style. There was a certain sense of ease in his approach and I would listen to him over and over again to get to the bottom of the penchant of the language. When Ian Healy took a breathtaking catch to dismiss Brain Lara, in the midst of roars and jubilation from the spectators, he just said, "O Healy, you are a beauty!" He used to pause, his expressions, his elucidations were very sophisticated, yet, never 'over-the-top'. I remember the 'Ball of the Century', as much as I remember the legendary commentator spelling it out, very much in his own way. "He has started off with the most beautiful delivery" - was all he had to say! A great learning - more often than not, the pitching of the words and the correct choice of those cause the effect that is needed. One does not need to have an extensive vocabulary to express oneself.
I learnt a great deal of English from the great Tony Greig too. I think, for him, the game was very simple - use exciting expressions, spell it out, and let the listeners enjoy. "Oh Boy!", "Magnificent shot!", "Into the fence for four!" were all great inputs for learners of the language. When Jadeja was hitting Waqar Younis during the World Cup 1996 Quarter Finals, Tony Greig was at his thrilling best. By that time though I had started to speak English well, I had not learnt the art of maximizing emotion while speaking. It was grooving, intoxicating, sometimes hair-raising to listen and learn from the former England Captain.
Deciphering Geoffrey Boycott was never easy. I heard Bob Willies and Tony Cozier speak in polished accent during many matches but the fact that dialect can have an impact on speaking was not really known by me. Waking up early morning during the 1992 India-Australia series or following the World Cup thereafter allowed me to get different perspectives of the language by listening to greats like Ian Chappell, Bill Lawry, or Sunil Gavaskar. But, never did I expect a person so straightforward and comments so crisp yet lingo so different. The Yorkshirian coined "Prince of Calcutta" and jumped on every single success of Sourav Ganguly with intonations so beautiful and voicing so supportive. So, his "Crickit" and "Wickit" sounded strange to start with, but "He should plant his front foot forward" was never iffy.
Ravi Shastri and Harsha Bhogle brought new life to cricket commentary from India. With Bhogle, I think the confidence factor increased a lot. Myself, together with many like-minded friends became upbeat and bold to anchor ourselves in English and eventually thrive on it. Sidhuism was just a new feather in the cap and the maturity and knowledge of a language found new humorous touch through his comments.
So, since that first winter, when English as a foreign language was primarily opened up for me through the likes of Chappell, Cozier, Holding, Gavaskar et al, I have been acquiring an acquaintance. First, listen! Then, comprehend! Then, understand! Finally, embody! Thus, move further! Learning language can be accomplished through multiple therapies - listening is certainly one of them. When listening is interesting, as like a sports commentary, it definitely flies.
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