Lucknow: When people of Lucknow use ‘Hum’ (we), it is often mistaken for vanity or arrogance, but it is used here because it is gender-neutral. “It is neither male, nor female-centric,” said Javed Akhtar, screenwriter, poet, lyricist. Speaking at an event organised in the memory of Comrade Shankar Dayal, organised by Com Shankar Dayal Tewari Memorial Committee at Urdu Academy on Sunday, he said, “People in Lucknow do not say ‘main’ and it is almost vulgar to say ‘Main ja raha hu’ or ‘mai ja rahi hu’; people use ‘hum’ that is use gender-neutral.”He went on to say that unlike those who have a choice between loving religion or the country, atheists like him faced no such posers as they only loved the country.He said, “When I left Lucknow, I was 12 or 13 years old, but as experts say, one’s personality is formed by the age of 8, and thereafter, you only collect data. So, whatever good or bad I have imbibed, Lucknow is responsible for it.” He said it was something to be happy about that people of Lucknow born even 20 or 25 years back too were carrying their city’s pride. “Whenever I come to Lucknow, I am delighted to see that there is still a lot of Awadh left and felt, in the vocabulary and the way people talk,” he said.He also recalled how children were not handled as delicately in his times as they were now and how parents now avoided scolding children for the fear of leaving them disturbed. “I studied in Colvin Taluqdars’ College among children from rich families, unlike myself. I was 8 years old and tried to get my parents to buy me a pair of expensive, branded shoes by throwing a tantrum. Aur us ke liye zindagi bhar joote pade (was admonished for it),” he said. “In ko to ameeri ka shauq hai, 19 rupaye ka joota pehnte hai” (he behaves like a rich, spoilt brat) was the taunt I heard so many times that it echoes in my ears till date. So much for my upbringing,” he said in his characteristic humorous and articulate style.
