# Hindi: Bachcha



## dialecte

Hi my friends. I'm working with a text from Manju Kapur, an Indian writer, and I've come across the word Bachcha, which I don't understand.

Can anyone give me a hand?


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## panjabigator

Ens pots donar el context?  De què llibre prové aquest frase?

Sense tot el context, jo diria que vol dir "fill," però a veure què ens portes.  De fet, l'altra opció seria una conjugació d'un verb i això no em sembla que té sentit.  Estàs llegint "Difficult Daughters," potser?


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## tamah

Podría ser utilizado como 'bebé ' O 'niño' O 'cría' normalmente Y 'hijo de ....' (como una palabrota) también.
Por lo tanto necesitamos más contexto.


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## dialecte

Hola, estic llegint _The Necklace_ de Manju Kapur, la mateixa autora que Difficult Daughters. 

Context:

A commitee was set up to investigate the causes of the disturbance and to recommend solutions. Various objections wwere put forth to the suitability of its memberts. Everybody know so and so was a *toady bachcha*, a disgrace to his community, ready to sell his soul to any passer by who offered to buy it. How could they get a fair deal with such people? A committee was set up to constitute the committee. Recommendations were invited that would be....

L'època és durant la segona Guerra Mundial, mentre a l'Índia s'encenien disputes entre musulmans i hindús que junts acabarien amb els anglesos.


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## cherine

Moderator request:

This thread was started in English, received one reply in Catalan and one in Spanish.
Could we stick to English for the benefit of all, please? 

Thanks!


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## dialecte

I agree Cherine. I'll post my last message again, this time in English:

Hi, I'm reading _The Necklace_ by Manju Kapur, she's the same author from Difficult Daughters.

Context:

A commitee was set up to investigate the causes of the disturbance and to recommend solutions. Various objections wwere put forth to the suitability of its memberts. Everybody know so and so was a toady bachcha, a disgrace to his community, ready to sell his soul to any passer by who offered to buy it. How could they get a fair deal with such people? A committee was set up to constitute the committee. Recommendations were invited that would be....

The period is during the II World War, while riots and movements where growing in India between Muslims and Hindus which in the end get rid of the English dominion.


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## Faylasoof

Toady = sycophant / flatterer.

*bachchah*بچہ is used in both Urdu and Hindi to mean  <child / baby> (originally from Persian). 

*Toady *(ٹوڈی) came into Hindi-Urdu from English and some people use it but we have many other alternatives to this:

خوشامدی_  xush aamadii_
 کاسہ لیس_  kaasah les_ – only in Urdu
  چاپلوس_  chaaplos_
چَمْچا_  chamchaa_ / چَمچَہ _chamchah_ – used a lot in colloquial speech (from which we have چَمچَہ گِیری  _chamchah giirii_ / چَمچَہ گِری_  cahmchah girii_ = sycophancy)

(But now there is an even more colourful word used to describe a *toady* – a _lotaa_ لوٹا – an item used for personal hygiene after going to the loo!)

The term *toady bachchah* sounds odd to me! It is meant to be a term of insult and I think it should be: *toady kaa bachchah*
- literally, _child of a sycophant_ but with the meaning of _son of a sycophant_ – so used in order to insult not just the person but his family too. This is meant to be a _gaalii _(an invective / abuse) the same way we say *kutte kaa bachchah *= a curr = an SOB!


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## tamah

Oh cherine sorry to post reply in spanish in this forum  

And dialecte -
As Faylasoof said it is 'toady ka bacchha' (son of a sycophant) or you can also say it as adjective - a bacchha (child) who is toady/sycophant/flatterer. 

Also we refer to an immature adult as bacchha (which can be taken as insult or a comment depending on the context)


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## cherine

tamah said:


> Oh cherine sorry to post reply in spanish in this forum


No problem, Tamah, it's not forbidden. It's just that English is the only common language between all the contributors in this forum, so it's better to use it for the benefit of everyone.


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## omlick

Faylasoof said:


> Toady = sycophant / flatterer.
> 
> *bachchah*بچہ is used in both Urdu and Hindi to mean <child / baby> (originally from Persian).
> 
> *Toady *(ٹوڈی) came into Hindi-Urdu from English and some people use it but we have many other alternatives to this:
> 
> خوشامدی_ xush aamadii_
> کاسہ لیس_ kaasah les_ – only in Urdu
> چاپلوس_ chaaplos_
> چَمْچا_  chamchaa_ / چَمچَہ _chamchah_ – used a lot in colloquial speech (from which we have چَمچَہ گِیری  _chamchah giirii_ / چَمچَہ گِری_  cahmchah girii_ = sycophancy)
> 
> (But now there is an even more colourful word used to describe a *toady* – a _lotaa_ لوٹا – an item used for personal hygiene after going to the loo!)
> 
> The term *toady bachchah* sounds odd to me! It is meant to be a term of insult and I think it should be: *toady kaa bachchah*
> - literally, _child of a sycophant_ but with the meaning of _son of a sycophant_ – so used in order to insult not just the person but his family too. This is meant to be a _gaalii _(an invective / abuse) the same way we say *kutte kaa bachchah *= a curr = an SOB!


 
Does chamchaa also mean "spoon"?  Is this  a slang use for the word then?


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## panjabigator

omlick said:


> Does chamchaa also mean "spoon"?  Is this  a slang use for the word then?



Chamcha/chamaj both mean spoon, but this usage is slang.


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## tamah

cherine said:


> No problem, Tamah, it's not forbidden. It's just that English is the only common language between all the contributors in this forum, so it's better to use it for the benefit of everyone.



I understand it completely.


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## dialecte

Thank all of you! You were very helpful.


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## shako_chan

Thanks to everyone! It was very useful for me too


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## Faylasoof

pskopje said:


> bachah is child or baby in Hindi. speak2india has some lessons. Take a look.


_bachchah_ بچہ  बच्चा is originally from Persian as mentioned earlier:



Faylasoof said:


> ….
> *bachchah*بچہ is used in both Urdu and Hindi to mean <child / baby> (originally from Persian).
> ……


 Pahalavi (Middle Persian) _*wachchag*_ -> New Persian _*bachcheh*_ -> Urdu  _*bachchah*_ -> Colloquial Hindi _*bachchah  =  baby / child*_. 

The Urdu-Hindi pronunciation (_*bachchah*_) is closer to the original Pahlavi in its ending (_*waccag*_ ) - true for many words we borrowed from Persian.

Thanks for this! I know of this link but as you'll gather there is a huge overlap between Urdu and colloquial Hindi due to a sound historical basis..... and we needn't go into it all that here as it'll be off-topic!


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## chieuhado

This is useful


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## Lugubert

The phrase without 'kaa' fells like influenced from English grammar: "(a) toadying kid".


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## Faylasoof

Lugubert said:


> The phrase without 'kaa' fells like influenced from English grammar: "(a) toadying kid".


 Perhaps you are right Lugubert, at least about the lack of _kaa_ being still meaningful! 

You might remember we also have these:

_sharaaratii bachchaa_ and also _shariir bachchaa = _naughty child

Same construct, i.e. no kaa, and this is proper Urdu and Hindi.


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