understanding the indian accent

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
B

BlahBlahYouToo

Lifer
Jul 10, 2007
12,041
3
0
we've all experienced it. the dreaded tech support call to india. ranjeet the phone CSR. the guy in the corner cube here on a H-1B visa.
they're just really hard to understand.

well, here's a thread that will hopefully make understanding their accent a little easier.

  • their Ws sound like Vs - 'which' is pronounced 'vitch'. 'well' is pronounced 'vell'.
  • accenting the wrong part of a word - 'component' is pronounced 'COM-ponent'.


feel free to add additional tips.
thanks and please do the needful.
 
FoBoT

FoBoT

No Lifer
Apr 30, 2001
63,084
15
81
fobot.com
watching the show outsourced helped a lot and a couple years ago our outsourcing partner sent a guy over here for six weeks to 'figure out what i do and document it' , so that was pretty helpful

you just gotta listen better
 
BoomerD

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
65,607
13,987
146
Fuck that..."We seem to be having a communication break-down. Please transfer me to someone who speaks English."
 
Baked

Baked

Lifer
Dec 28, 2004
36,052
17
81
It's cool, my white employees always pretend like they don't know what I'm saying, even though I say it w/ the perfect Calif accent. Bitches.

J/K, I love my bitches.
 
AreaCode707

AreaCode707

Lifer
Sep 21, 2001
18,447
133
106
I find different Indian accents to be easier/harder to understand. Most of the time I get by just fine but on occasion I'll be working with someone who is from an area where the accent is more challenging for me. Fortunately people are pretty good natured when I asked them to repeat because "I didn't quite catch that."

Pro tip:
- Quality of phone line makes a TON of difference. VOIP means I can't understand a word my engineers are saying, while via land line they are clear as day
- If I don't get frustrated, they generally don't get frustrated either. Difficulty in communication runs both ways, and I've found the power lies with me to make it hard or friendly.
 
Atomic Playboy

Atomic Playboy

Lifer
Feb 6, 2007
16,432
1
81
Here's a tip, don't use words that Americans consider relatively common and expect them to understand. I had 24 Hour Fitness call me and tell me I owed them money (I didn't). I got upset, and said they were trying to extort money from me. I then said "you're acting like the Mafia." The guy I was talking to said, and I quote, "no sir, this is not the Mafia, this is 24 Hour Fitness." I was so dumbstruck that I couldn't even be upset. I apologized for the misunderstanding and hung up.
 
Joseph F

Joseph F

Diamond Member
Jul 12, 2010
3,522
2
0
BlahBlahYouToo said:
we've all experienced it. the dreaded tech support call to india. ranjeet the phone CSR. the guy in the corner cube here on a H-1B visa.
they're just really hard to understand.

well, here's a thread that will hopefully make understanding their accent a little easier.

  • their Ws sound like Vs - 'which' is pronounced 'vitch'. 'well' is pronounced 'vell'.
  • accenting the wrong part of a word - 'component' is pronounced 'COM-ponent'.

feel free to add additional tips.
thanks and please do the needful.
Click to expand...

Actually, I noticed that my doctor (who is Indian) seems to pronounce V's like W's. :hmm:
 
Braznor

Braznor

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 2005
4,767
435
126
OP, next time you don't understand someone on a phone call, shove the phone up your ass. I'm sure that will work for you.
 
brainhulk

brainhulk

Diamond Member
Sep 14, 2007
9,376
454
126
1147380_o.gif


just picture this gif in your mind as you are listening. all will become clear after that
 
W

wty

Member
Feb 7, 2012
106
4
81
How old are you?
Indian man: I'm dirty.
elder brother: Im dirty too.
Father: I'm too dirty.

That's the way :)
 
God Mode

God Mode

Platinum Member
Jul 2, 2005
2,903
0
71
It sounds like quickly mumbled words. I think many indians have trouble speaking sharp sounding english words. I wonder if they're better with a language like french.
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
H is pronounced "etch"

If there are 2 of the same number together (example 122345) they will say one, double two, three.

They don't seem to know the NATO phonetic alphabet and use words they know, like e for elephant, m for mumbai.

Watch out for the quiet Indians like Madhuri from Outsourced or the male Indians that have high pitched voices.
 
P

PimpJuice

Platinum Member
Feb 14, 2005
2,051
1
76
BlahBlahYouToo said:
we've all experienced it. the dreaded tech support call to india. ranjeet the phone CSR. the guy in the corner cube here on a H-1B visa.
they're just really hard to understand.

well, here's a thread that will hopefully make understanding their accent a little easier.

  • their Ws sound like Vs - 'which' is pronounced 'vitch'. 'well' is pronounced 'vell'.
  • accenting the wrong part of a word - 'component' is pronounced 'COM-ponent'.


feel free to add additional tips.
thanks and please do the needful.
Click to expand...

I'm sure you'd have a perfect accent if you were smart enough to learn another language. You should probably work on that overweight issue you have first though.
 
O

OinkBoink

Senior member
Nov 25, 2003
700
0
71
Well, that's how urban Indians educated in some of the better English medium schools and who usually live in relatively richer areas speak.

Usually, if you're listening to someone who hails from a town or a village, or some of the people from areas in cities where the standard of living is not very high, their English will be poorer grammatically and have a stronger accent (accent is a relative thing anyway).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom