In response to the debate around the accents that Indian characters speak with on The BBC’s The Right Guy, the dialect coach who worked on the show has said that the accents are more accurate than most people suggest. .
Directed by Mira Nair and written by Andrew Davies, A Right Boy premiered on Netflix on October 23. Several critics have noted the forced way in which the characters speak English.
Hetal Varia, a ‘Mumbai-based accent, dialect and voice consultant’, told HuffPost India that Indians in the 1950s, which is when the story is set, actually sounded like this. “A Right Boy takes place in the 1950s in post-independent India. The language we spoke then was English, of course, but it was still spoken by Indians for whom it was not the first language, ”he said.
He added: “The important thing to remember is that most of the characters in The Right Child are from very well-educated families and their speech is inherently different.” He said his job was “to get artists to deliberately speak English but to steer clear of the South Indian stereotype.”
He concluded by saying that “the trick is to get the emotionality of the dialogue correct so that it appears that the character is speaking from the inside and not just repeating the lines.”
The Right Guy is based on the novel by Vikram Seth and stars Tanya Maniktala, Ishaan Khatter, and Tabu, among dozens of other actors, both known and new.
Also Read: A Proper Child Review: Mira Nair’s Inappropriate Adaptation Is Partially Redeemed By Ishaan Khatter And Tabu’s Forbidden Love Story
The Hindustan Times review noted: “It is clear from the opening scenes that A Right Boy is aimed at a Western audience, as a window into an exotic culture. Most of it is in English, with excerpts in Hindi and Urdu subtitled. Honestly, it’s a most rewarding viewing experience. The whites wouldn’t mind, but it’s jarring to see two villagers converse in English. “
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