RECENTLY, a reporter wrote that she was caught off-guard when actor Hugh Grant professed
ignorance as to which language was spoken in Singapore.

And that set me thinking.

No, not about Grant's ignorance - he is a Hollywood hero, after all.

But about the reporter's reaction. Where had she been living until now?

If I told her of the number of misconceptions and presumptions I have faced in my travels
around the world, she would be left wide-eyed with astonishment.

Let's see, where do I begin?

Do I start with the lady at the checkout counter in Germany who marvelled that I spoke such
fluent German despite having only just landed in the country?

She could not believe the language could be learnt anywhere but in her native country.

That I had learnt it in the Indian capital of New Delhi left her speechless with surprise.

And, talking about Delhi, what about the woman I met here who professed to have only recently
found out that it was the capital of India?

I suppose geography was a class that she slept through in school.

But the prize for the ultimate ignorance goes to the couple who came selling a water purifier.

After spinning a whole yarn as to the benefits I would enjoy once I began using their water
purifier, they handed me a CD that I could watch to learn of even more benefits.

As they were leaving, they said the CD had the spiel in English, Mandarin and Malay.

'Unfortunately it is not there in Tamil,' said the woman.

Seeing that I was an Indian she took it for granted that I spoke Tamil.

When I told her that it was okay and that even if a Tamil segment had been present it would
have been of no use to me as I didn't know the language, she did a double take.

'But you are Indian. What language do you speak?' she asked, trying to figure me out.

Only one of the 18 official languages in India and many more unofficial ones, I replied.

She left my house in a daze.

Almost as surprised as the reporter was, perhaps, at learning that Grant thought Singaporeans
spoke Indonesian.

Now what is that?

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(http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg)

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