Mispronunciation of the comic kind
IN the early 1990s, a carrom board championship was held at Rani Jhansi Park in Shimla. After the event ended, the second and third prize winners collected their trophies, but the champions, who were supposed to bask in the glory of that moment, went missing — and chaos ensued.
Despite desperate calls echoing through the venue, the winners remained elusive, adding to the MC’s frustration.
Suddenly, a gentleman rushed to the main organiser, exclaiming, ‘I have found them,’ pointing at two bewildered boys who had apparently been ‘victims’ of correct pronunciation of their names they weren’t used to hearing.
The MC, now simmering with annoyance, confronted the absentee winners: ‘Why on earth did you not come when your names were called?’
One of them, with a bewildered expression and a touch of defiance, replied in Punjabi, ‘Sir, we were waiting for the announcement of our names, but you never did it.’
‘Are you not from YYUC?’ the moderator queried, trying to make sense of it all.
‘No, sir, we are from Juvashakti Jungsters’ Junion Club,’ came the perplexing response.
The MC, caught in a fit of hysterical laughter, finally decoded the mystery, ‘That’s what we said, Yuvashakti Youngsters Union Club!’
The chief guest, an elderly man who was sipping tea, intervened, ‘Where are you from, my boys?’
‘Sir, we are from Juna,’ they replied innocently.
‘Oh, Una!’ chuckled the chief guest, sensing the comedy of errors unfolding and replied, ‘I am also from Una.’
‘And your names?’ he asked, still amused by the unfolding spectacle.
‘I’m Jogesh Sharma, and he is Moon Singh,’ one of them said.
As the truth dawned on the organisers, it was clear that the winners didn’t come to collect their trophies because they were used to hearing mispronounced names of their club and theirs as well.
The chief guest teased them more, ‘Your name begins with which J? The one after the letter I?’
‘No, sir. It is Bai (he meant Y) for Jogesh,’ Yogesh clarified, invoking his own phonetic nuances.
‘And how do you spell Moon?’ the chief guest asked the other boy.
‘M-o-h-a-n,’ Mohan blurted out each letter.
The organisers, now in stitches, agreed to rewrite the certificates with the correct names — Yogesh Sharma and Mohan Singh.
But the champions, still not entirely convinced, said, ‘Could you please double-check the club’s name too, since there are many bais (read Ys) in it?’
The chief guest, sensing their worry, reassured them with a twinkle in his eye, ‘Boys, don’t worry, it’s all correct. Only you and I are from Una, not the organisers.’
