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Chini adda' helps mainland China
KOLKATA: Nineteen-year-old An Kui knew very little about Kolkata when he enrolled at St Xavier's. The first-year BCom student of St. Xavier's would hardly leave his hostel room after classes or interact with classmates, barring the Chinese. It changed after he attended the Chini adda' sessions organized by the The School of Chinese Language (TSCL). The monthly tete-a-tete brings together members of Indian and Chinese communities.
"I had surfed a little about Kolkata and the Bengali community on net. But I did not quite catch the spirit of the place till I interacted with a few locals. Language is a problem but people never make me feel left out," said Kui.
Meanwhile, aware of China Town, he, however, never visited it. "Isn't it called Tangra? I will soon visit it," he said.
His classmate from China, Wen Zhang, felt they needed to interact more often with Kolkatans. "Perhaps, we would be better off if the local Chinese act as facilitators. They are now Indians and know the culture and local languages," he said.
Accepting the language barrier, the pupils said day-today affairs like asking for directions or making yourself understood at a shop counter could be frustrating. "Even food is a problem as our food is quite unlike the Chinese served here," said Zhang.
Less than six of the 30 students at St Xavier's speak broken English. The others still depend on sign language. "We are trying to provide them a social platform to make a headway. Some improvements have been made but they still have a long way to go," said TSCL vice-chairman Charisma Saraff.
Brushing aside the language differences, TSCL language teacher Ke Nian, who hails from mainland China, felt it shouldn't be too difficult to mingle with Kolkatans. "You need to make a beginning. The locals are familiar with the Chinese having had a sprawling China Town in their backyard for years. Kolkata has an intellectual environment," said Nian.
Some inquisitive students went to China Town (Tangra) in search of people they can be friends with. "They speak Chinese very differently. Even the food in the restaurants here is to suit the Indian palate. However, one good thing is that, some owners still have relatives across the boundary who come visiting. Hence, they have a fair idea of what we eat back at home. So they could rustle up a few familiar dishes," said Zhang Yang Qing.
The group is trying its best, "but the rice is not sticky enough and the fish is too spicy!"
KOLKATA: Nineteen-year-old An Kui knew very little about Kolkata when he enrolled at St Xavier's. The first-year BCom student of St. Xavier's would hardly leave his hostel room after classes or interact with classmates, barring the Chinese. It changed after he attended the Chini adda' sessions organized by the The School of Chinese Language (TSCL). The monthly tete-a-tete brings together members of Indian and Chinese communities.
"I had surfed a little about Kolkata and the Bengali community on net. But I did not quite catch the spirit of the place till I interacted with a few locals. Language is a problem but people never make me feel left out," said Kui.
Meanwhile, aware of China Town, he, however, never visited it. "Isn't it called Tangra? I will soon visit it," he said.
His classmate from China, Wen Zhang, felt they needed to interact more often with Kolkatans. "Perhaps, we would be better off if the local Chinese act as facilitators. They are now Indians and know the culture and local languages," he said.
Accepting the language barrier, the pupils said day-today affairs like asking for directions or making yourself understood at a shop counter could be frustrating. "Even food is a problem as our food is quite unlike the Chinese served here," said Zhang.
Less than six of the 30 students at St Xavier's speak broken English. The others still depend on sign language. "We are trying to provide them a social platform to make a headway. Some improvements have been made but they still have a long way to go," said TSCL vice-chairman Charisma Saraff.
Brushing aside the language differences, TSCL language teacher Ke Nian, who hails from mainland China, felt it shouldn't be too difficult to mingle with Kolkatans. "You need to make a beginning. The locals are familiar with the Chinese having had a sprawling China Town in their backyard for years. Kolkata has an intellectual environment," said Nian.
Some inquisitive students went to China Town (Tangra) in search of people they can be friends with. "They speak Chinese very differently. Even the food in the restaurants here is to suit the Indian palate. However, one good thing is that, some owners still have relatives across the boundary who come visiting. Hence, they have a fair idea of what we eat back at home. So they could rustle up a few familiar dishes," said Zhang Yang Qing.
The group is trying its best, "but the rice is not sticky enough and the fish is too spicy!"
