ISSUE
Friday, August 15, 2025
Volume 16 . Issue 72
Three years ago, Manukau schoolteacher Satya Dutt welcomed a pundit, a family friend, into his house and the pair sat down to chat.
They shared pleasantries, ate savouries and tea, and after a while the pundit then asked to be excused as he had to go to a “Ram Katha” (religious gathering to preach teachings of Lord Rama) in a nearby suburb.
“I’ll come with you,” said Dutt, a staunch Hindu who enjoyed attending religious gatherings.
“Err, no,” said punditji, hesitantly. “It’s a private function.”
“A Ram Katha, private?” queried Dutt.
“It’s for a South African Indian family and I will be conducting the katha in English,” blurted punditji.
“They can’t speak or understand Hindi.”
Dutt was dumbstruck. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing: “An Indian family can’t speak or understand Hindi?”
That brief exchange left such an indelible mark on Dutt that till today he has not been able to erase that from his mind.
The incident has now become the driving force behind Dutt’s tireless campaign to have the Hindi language taught in schools throughout
“That incident left me thinking that one day, Indians in
“I don’t ever want that to happen,” the former Nadi resident told Sandesh.
Dutt is now at the helm of the formation of the Hindi Language & Culture Trust of New Zealand, which will push for the teaching of Hindi in schools.
The trust, now in its infancy, has had several public meetings, and is now in the process of adopting a constitution and formalising its establishment.
Dutt, who holds a degree in Hindi language, said many ethnic groups, which had fewer numbers than Indians living in
“So why not Hindi?”
He said the next step after the formation of the trust would be to approach the Ministry of Education and get things going.
And part of their efforts to raise funds for the establishment of the trust has drawn the support of the Adarsh Satsangh Ramayan Mandali which will hold a kirtan evening in April and donate 50 per cent of the proceedings towards the trust.
The kirtan sammelan will be held at the ARST Hall in
Three years ago, Manukau schoolteacher Satya Dutt welcomed a pundit, a family friend, into his house and the pair sat down to chat.
They shared pleasantries, ate savouries and tea, and after a while the pundit then asked to be excused as he had to go to a “Ram Katha” (religious gathering to preach...
Three years ago, Manukau schoolteacher Satya Dutt welcomed a pundit, a family friend, into his house and the pair sat down to chat.
They shared pleasantries, ate savouries and tea, and after a while the pundit then asked to be excused as he had to go to a “Ram Katha” (religious gathering to preach teachings of Lord Rama) in a nearby suburb.
“I’ll come with you,” said Dutt, a staunch Hindu who enjoyed attending religious gatherings.
“Err, no,” said punditji, hesitantly. “It’s a private function.”
“A Ram Katha, private?” queried Dutt.
“It’s for a South African Indian family and I will be conducting the katha in English,” blurted punditji.
“They can’t speak or understand Hindi.”
Dutt was dumbstruck. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing: “An Indian family can’t speak or understand Hindi?”
That brief exchange left such an indelible mark on Dutt that till today he has not been able to erase that from his mind.
The incident has now become the driving force behind Dutt’s tireless campaign to have the Hindi language taught in schools throughout
“That incident left me thinking that one day, Indians in
“I don’t ever want that to happen,” the former Nadi resident told Sandesh.
Dutt is now at the helm of the formation of the Hindi Language & Culture Trust of New Zealand, which will push for the teaching of Hindi in schools.
The trust, now in its infancy, has had several public meetings, and is now in the process of adopting a constitution and formalising its establishment.
Dutt, who holds a degree in Hindi language, said many ethnic groups, which had fewer numbers than Indians living in
“So why not Hindi?”
He said the next step after the formation of the trust would be to approach the Ministry of Education and get things going.
And part of their efforts to raise funds for the establishment of the trust has drawn the support of the Adarsh Satsangh Ramayan Mandali which will hold a kirtan evening in April and donate 50 per cent of the proceedings towards the trust.
The kirtan sammelan will be held at the ARST Hall in
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