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Kolkata: A dialogue script sent by the West Bengal State Education Department to be staged as a play in educational institutions to celebrate the 76th birth anniversary of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is noteworthy not just because of the overreach in the government stipulating its performance, but its language.

The play is titled ‘Namo Seva: Anjana Kahini‘ which translates to ‘Namo’s service, the unknown story’.

Detailed instructions follow regarding the number of characters and how it should be acted out. However, the standard of Bengali used in these dialogues, the manner in which sentences have been written, and the disastrous outcome of what is clearly an effort at translating from Hindi with AI in certain places have left people who grew up reading and teaching Bengali in a bind.

Teachers are worried: if children are forced to memorise incorrect Bengali for these dialogues, what will they actually learn? When questioned about the language of the play, an official of the State Education Department declined to comment, offering only a brief reply: “Whatever needs to be done has all been sent.”

Questions regarding the overwhelming number of errors in Bengali were sent to Minister of State for Education Kaushik Chowdhury and the Education Secretary Binod Kumar, but they had not responded at the time of publication.

The story follows a reunion of friends in which Narendra Modi’s journey of service is revealed. The interaction among parents, children, and alumni is meant to reveal how India was transformed in an instant at Modi’s touch, starting with Gujarat. Yet, it says, he did not tire, and nor will he until the centenary of the nation’s independence in 2047.

How does the play progress?

Five school friends, now around 40 years old, are accompanied by their four children. The characters’ names, family background, and timeframes are essayed in the script.

The play asks for ‘acceptable excerpts’ from religious chants, saying that they can be from ‘য়া দেবী সর্বভূতেষু (Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu)’ to “বন্দে মাতরম্ (Vande Mataram)’. These are referred to in the guidelines as ‘মঙ্গলচরণ’ (Mangalcharan). Dictionaries, however, state that no such word exists in Bengali, a point corroborated by linguists. The actual word is ‘মঙ্গলাচরণ (Mangalacharan)’ – a ritual performed to ward off obstacles before initiating any task in Sanatan Dharma.

The play then advances step by step, starting with the devastating earthquake in Kutch, Gujarat, in 2001. That marked the beginning of Modi’s victorious journey in state politics. This........

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