Willow_on_fire Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 why you gotta hate on a brotha like that dawgg..that aint cool yo :P hate?....sorry if it was'nt directed towards me...:D
Aditi Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 I read somewhere that whatever accent you speak with up until the age of 5 is your natural accent. But then again, actors can imitate different accents perfectly too.
cybervickey Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 nah .. i was talking abt the op.. u cool homeboi , i aint got nuffin against u .. :D
DomainK Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 I knew this Tamil guy (with due respect to all Tamil guys) who cleared CAT as many as 5 times, could not make it to the IIMs because he could not clear the interviews even one single time. The reason: accent. Whenever he spoke English or his broken Hindi, he sounded like he was speaking Tamil. I have talked to him and he literally had to repeat words five or six times for someone to understand what he was saying. Do people pick up an accent naturally after staying in a country for a long time: Yes, some people do. Some people are flexible enough to do that. Its more of a mental block than anything else. However, when people consciously try to mimic an accent, that's when they make a mess of it.
flamy Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 OK. I try and hold onto my Indian accent as much as possible. But, for me, as long as I'm not intentionally copying the accents, it's cool with me. Because, it is human tendency to mirror each other. When we are in sync with another person or want to bring them into sync with us, we tend to copy their body language, their tone of voice, their accent unconsciously. I always tease my mom when she speaks broken Telugu on purpose with the maid in a Kannada accent. It's the same when we talk to an American. Further, we are used to the American accent (Hollywood), so our subconscious mind doesn't have to make much effort to match the accent with an American (more North than the Southern 'drawl'). You won't be finding yourself copying the accent of a Scottish or a Chinese or a Persian that easily.
Willow_on_fire Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 I knew this Tamil guy (with due respect to all Tamil guys) who cleared CAT as many as 5 times, could not make it to the IIMs because he could not clear the interviews even one single time. The reason: accent. Whenever he spoke English or his broken Hindi, he sounded like he was speaking Tamil. I have talked to him and he literally had to repeat words five or six times for someone to understand what he was saying. Do people pick up an accent naturally after staying in a country for a long time: Yes, some people do. Some people are flexible enough to do that. Its more of a mental block than anything else. However, when people consciously try to mimic an accent, that's when they make a mess of it. well Dom...I have friends in US who are from Bangalore...mostly software Engineers....few of them visited me on holidays or during their H1 visa application....I was surprised...that they still had that typical Bangalore accent...it was funny....the problem is some of these guys feel...."we are highly educated & qualified and we don't need to change tha accent"...does'nt make sense in North America...it is ok in India. a very good example is...Dr. Sanjay Gupta on CNN...the guy is class...Indian looks..perfect american accent...I feel most qualified professionals should pick the accent when living in USA or Canada.
varun Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 Because, it is human tendency to mirror each other. When we are in sync with another person or want to bring them into sync with us, we tend to copy their body language, their tone of voice, their accent unconsciously. .. :hatsoff:. Very perceptive
Aditi Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 :hatsoff:. Very perceptive Your accent is so cool :D
SachDan Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 We,people from South India has the worst accent.Especially the ones from Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Willow_on_fire Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 We' date='people from South India has the worst accent.Especially the ones from Kerala and Tamil Nadu.[/quote'] I appreciate youe honesty bro.....:hatsoff: I've come across many who have this ego problem of a Engineer's degree...:haha:
varun Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 Your accent is so cool :D Hah, now I've heard it all :P
THX_1138 Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 I had developed a fairly thick accent long before i moved to the United States... i think it was the influence of Hollywood. as an impressionable 12 year old, i might have lead myself into believing that with a heavy british accent, i could score some blondes. Still waiting...
flamy Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 :hatsoff:. Very perceptive That's the truth, Ruth. :D
Lurker Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 Rather simple. People who are confident of themselves, for them background is not an issue. For people who are not confident they will seek it through various means, one of which is putting a false accent.
flamy Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 Rather simple. People who are confident of themselves, for them background is not an issue. For people who are not confident they will seek it through various means, one of which is putting a false accent. Also, people who are confident enough wouldn't worry when an accent naturally develops and won't obsess abt losing identity :omg:
beetle Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 How can a person have one accent for 23-24 years...and just take a few months to get a firangi one? How come these guys are not so quick to get Indian accent from other indian regions. Ever heard of a Tamilian speaking with a bong accent because he shifted to Kolkotta or a Punjabi guy getting a Kannada accent on shifting to Bangalore.....? Some people go for a weeks break to Amreeka and come back with an accent...:--D
DomainK Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 How can a person have one accent for 23-24 years...and just take a few months to get a firangi one? How come these guys are not so quick to get Indian accent from other indian regions. Ever heard of a Tamilian speaking with a bong accent because he shifted to Kolkotta or a Punjabi guy getting a Kannada accent on shifting to Bangalore.....? Some people go for a weeks break to Amreeka and come back with an accent...:--D Well, that happens as well. People not only pick up foreign accents, they do pick up Indian regional accents as well. Happened to me. I shifted to Delhi well past my teens and picked up the accent quite fast. In six months time I could pass for a Delhite and the frequent 'o's that come in the eastern accent had disappeared 99%.
Guest dada_rocks Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 Rather simple. People who are confident of themselves, for them background is not an issue. For people who are not confident they will seek it through various means, one of which is putting a false accent. You sound like Mulayan Singh Yadav only thing he took your theory to extreme and said those who are insecure do business in english.. I didn't know one day I will find mulayam in you:haha:
Predator_05 Posted August 23, 2008 Posted August 23, 2008 Sanjay Gupta was born and bred in Detroit, and he has lived in the United States for his whole life. Fake accents are incredibly pretentious and sound pathetic. I have comes across some freshies speaking in their Amreekan akshents and they sound like morons. I don't know why they feel the need to talk like that when they sound perfectly fine speaking naturally. If you aren't an American, stop trying to act like one. This fake accent crap seems to have caught on in India as well. Now why the hell would someone living in India want to put on an accent ? Idiots
Ram Posted August 23, 2008 Author Posted August 23, 2008 Some Indian guys tend to over-do the 'I-am-a-cool-guy' and end up looking downright ridiculous and stupid. Of course, all of 'em start out with the change in their accent. The thing is, some people are really good at imitating accents, their senses quickly pick up the nuances of the sound intonations, so yes, they can change accents and sound natural. But, I am talking about a miniscule minority here. But a sure shot way to know if a person is faking his accent or not is when his so called accent starts degenerating after a while, big time. Because what they speak does not come naturally to 'em, they tend to pronounce the same words differently, in the consecutive times they speak it. As far as I am concerned, my think my accent is very cosmopolitan. I lived in India for 22 years, spent thousands of hours hearing to cricket commentary of cricketers from different nationalities, seen countless Hollywood movies and spent numerous hours watching news broadcasts and other programmes on BBC. So, you can clearly see the impact of all these in the way I speak. But if anything, I still have distinctive Tamil way of speaking my English, as far the stresses and strains in the words are concerned. It may not be obvious to everyone, but a trained ear can definitely discern my Dravidian linguistic roots. And thankfully, I dont intend losing them either. :D
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