Do more Indians speak Hindi or English?

528 million speak Hindi as a first language. It is both the most widely spoken first as well as second language in India, while English is just the 44th most widely spoken first language even though it is the second-most widely spoken second language.

Which state mother tongue is Hindi in India?

The Hindi belt is sometimes also used to refer to nine Indian states whose official language is Standard Hindi, namely Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the union territory of Chandigarh and the National Capital Territory of Delhi.

When should I switch from Hindi to English in a conversation?

However, as soon as a Gujarati or a Bengali is in the conversation, immediately switch to Hindi, assuming that all of them can understand Hindi. Similarly, as soon as Tamil person is around, switch to English, assuming the Tamil person doesn’t know Hindi. Similarly, as soon as some American or non-Indian is around, definitely switch to English.

Should Hindi be a national language in India?

Do not start a debate of whether Hindi is a national language (of India) or not. Just talk in any language that everyone around you can understand. If a Marathi and a Bengali are talking in Hindi, South Indians should not automatically assume that Hindi is their language and if they can talk in Hindi, you can talk in Tamil.

Do South Indians speak English well?

To the South Indian, English is more ‘home’ than Hindi can ever be. All educated south Indians know English and are very comfortable with it. Blue collar workers understand very basic English. I am Tamil and I stay in Bangalore.

Why do so many Indians prefer English over other languages?

This is the world that hundreds of millions of Indians live in simply because the elite prefer English. This discrimination has become so systemic that the elite and middle classes send their children to English private schools while the vast poor send theirs to the government schools of their mother tongue.