British daily dares ‘Hindu nationalists’, reverts to using Bombay

[INDIAPOSITIVE]

British daily dares ‘Hindu nationalists’, reverts to using Bombay

• AFP
  |
• Updated: Feb 10, 2016 19:38 IST

An Army officer takes photographs of a cultural program on Army Day celebration at Gateway of India in Mumbai. The city’s name was changed in 1995. (HT photo)
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British newspaper The Independent will switch back to using Bombay rather than Mumbai when referring to India’s financial capital, its editor said Wednesday.

Amol Rajan said the move was a stand against what he said was the closed-minded view of Hindu nationalists.

The city was officially renamed Mumbai in 1995, a change forced through by Shiv Sena. However, within the city, the old colonial name and the Marathi-language name are often used interchangeably.

“The whole point of Bombay is of an open, cosmopolitan port city, the gateway of India that’s open to the world,” said Rajan, who was born in Kolkata--formerly known as Calcutta--and raised in London.

“If you call it what Hindu nationalists want you to call it, you essentially do their work for them,” the 32-year-old told BBC radio.

“As journalists, as someone who edits The Independent, it’s incredibly important to be specific about our terminology.

“I’d rather side with the tradition of India that’s been open to the world, rather than the one that’s been closed, which is in ascendance right now,” he said, referring to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

The BJP governs Maharashtra in coalition with the Shiv Sena.

Rajan said post-colonial India had the “open, secular, pluralist and tolerant” tradition of India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and independence leader Mahatma Gandhi.

It also had a “slightly nastier strain of Hindu nationalism” and it was important to “venerate the tradition of India which shows the best of India -- an open metropolis”.

Shiv Sena renamed the city after the goddess Mumbadevi, the protector of fisherman who were the area’s original inhabitants.


British daily dares ‘Hindu nationalists’, reverts to using Bombay | india | Hindustan Times

 

[Parul]

Any Marathi person, when speaking in Marathi, has always called it Mumbai (even when the 'official' name was Bombay). Still calls it Mumbai. So this is not just the decision of some political party.

 

[vayuputhra]

Brits?, are they still thinking of the raj, they can call what ever they can, first they have to return our robbed kohinoor diamond, give back our robbed wealth, and thay can call whatever they can, now who cares for england? We don't care for firangs, a country of robbers.

 

[Steve781]

I don't know much about Mumbai/Bombay but some name changes can be pretty absurd. Persians demanded everybody start calling their country "Iran" because that's the way they say it. Same with Peking becoming "Beijing". It's like if Germany woke up on morning and started demanding everybody else call their country "Deutschland".

 

[Abingdonboy]

British daily dares ‘Hindu nationalists’, reverts to using Bombay

• AFP
  |
• Updated: Feb 10, 2016 19:38 IST

An Army officer takes photographs of a cultural program on Army Day celebration at Gateway of India in Mumbai. The city’s name was changed in 1995. (HT photo)
Share
0
Share
Share
Share
British newspaper The Independent will switch back to using Bombay rather than Mumbai when referring to India’s financial capital, its editor said Wednesday.

Amol Rajan said the move was a stand against what he said was the closed-minded view of Hindu nationalists.

The city was officially renamed Mumbai in 1995, a change forced through by Shiv Sena. However, within the city, the old colonial name and the Marathi-language name are often used interchangeably.

“The whole point of Bombay is of an open, cosmopolitan port city, the gateway of India that’s open to the world,” said Rajan, who was born in Kolkata--formerly known as Calcutta--and raised in London.

“If you call it what Hindu nationalists want you to call it, you essentially do their work for them,” the 32-year-old told BBC radio.

“As journalists, as someone who edits The Independent, it’s incredibly important to be specific about our terminology.

“I’d rather side with the tradition of India that’s been open to the world, rather than the one that’s been closed, which is in ascendance right now,” he said, referring to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

The BJP governs Maharashtra in coalition with the Shiv Sena.

Rajan said post-colonial India had the “open, secular, pluralist and tolerant” tradition of India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and independence leader Mahatma Gandhi.

It also had a “slightly nastier strain of Hindu nationalism” and it was important to “venerate the tradition of India which shows the best of India -- an open metropolis”.

Shiv Sena renamed the city after the goddess Mumbadevi, the protector of fisherman who were the area’s original inhabitants.


British daily dares ‘Hindu nationalists’, reverts to using Bombay | india | Hindustan Times

The name was changed 21 years ago and now this editor is taking exception to it?


Sounds like someone is trying to drum up some cheap publicity.

 

[Brahmaputra Mail]

Indian journalists are wannabe intellectuals. They do not have basic ethics of journalism, one of them being not imposing their views over others. People of Mumbai, Maharashtra and India as a whole have accepted this name change from Bombay to Mumbai. Looks like only butthurt here is the new editor of Independent. He can surely join the ranks of Nayantara Sehgal, Dibakar Banerjee and all. Kewal woh log hi samajhdaar hai, aur hum thehre bewakoof.

 

[SrNair]

I don't know much about Mumbai/Bombay but some name changes can be pretty absurd. Persians demanded everybody start calling their country "Iran" because that's the way they say it. Same with Peking becoming "Beijing". It's like if Germany woke up on morning and started demanding everybody else call their country "Deutschland".

Our country, our rules .Foreigners should respect that for good relations .

On topic :British media ?
Who cares ?
India's financal capital would be Mumbai and will always known as Mumbai.

 

[jamahir]

Indian journalists are wannabe intellectuals. They do not have basic ethics of journalism, one of them being not imposing their views over others. People of Mumbai, Maharashtra and India as a whole have accepted this name change from Bombay to Mumbai. Looks like only butthurt here is the new editor of Independent. He can surely join the ranks of Nayantara Sehgal, Dibakar Banerjee and all. Kewal woh log hi samajhdaar hai, aur hum thehre bewakoof.

Our country, our rules .Foreigners should respect that for good relations .

On topic :British media ?
Who cares ?
India's financal capital would be Mumbai and will always known as Mumbai.

a member of the indian intelligentsia here.

this is what i use : bombay, poona, madras, calcutta, bangalore... to hell with the regional chauvinists.

 

[Srinivas]

Muamba is the local goddess of the fishermen, that is how that place got this name.

 

[SrNair]

a member of the indian intelligentsia here.

this is what i use : bombay, poona, madras, calcutta, bangalore... to hell with the regional chauvinists.

Poor Gaddafi

 

[jamahir]

Poor Gaddafi

so you wanted to post something.

 

[Parul]

Marathi manus kute aahe? (I hope I got it correct)

 

[nang2]

Strange. Why bother changing the English name? If Chinese followed the same "nationalist" line, even the word "China" would have had been changed. Who want to associate his own country with something fragile and non-sticking.

Turkey would choose a different name, too, instead of using the one that undergoes massive slaughtering every year in fall.

 

[45'22']

Po-tey-toe
Po-taa-toe

Same thing

 

[nang2]

The locals i.e. citizens of the state calls it "Mumbai" in thier Native Tounge. Hence, the name was changed.

We Chinese call China in our own native tongue, too, which is completely different from the pronunciation of China. In native tongue, you can do whatever you like. But why bother with the name in English, which is not your native tongue?