Do you find yourself pondering these questions - How to learn Hindi easily? Is Hindi an easy language to learn in the first place?
You may be marrying into a Hindi-speaking family, or you may be a healthcare worker aiming to connect with patients and colleagues. Maybe you've just moved to India or to a Hindi-speaking Indian state and want to chat with locals, or you're settling down long-term and hoping to embrace Indian culture.
Before we dive in, here's a tip: we offer highly-rated language learning courses through which you can learn Hindi online with Bhasha.io, an online language learning school. This online course could save you lots of time and effort in your Hindi language learning journey.
This guide will show you straightforward, effective ways to start learning the Hindi language easily. By the time you reach the end of this guide, you'll feel ready to learn the Hindi language with confidence!
The Benefits of Learning Hindi for Beginners
Why consider learning the Hindi language? It's more than just picking up a new language. Hindi opens doors to connect with millions across India, whether you're looking to make new friends, grow your career, or bond with your Hindi speaking in-laws. Becoming fluent in Hindi can be a game-changer in many aspects of your life. Curious about more perks of mastering Hindi? There's plenty to discover about how it can enrich your personal and professional world. Read on.
How Do I Begin Learning Hindi?
Let’s tackle this question that most beginners have - How can I learn the Hindi language easily?
Learning Hindi is easy and achievable if you understand your goal correctly. All you need is to set aside 15-30 mins every day to study the language.
Here is how you can think about setting goals:
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Do you want to know enough Hindi to order at a restaurant or buy something at a store? You might just need to learn around 10-20 phrases. This might take you just a weekend to learn.
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Are you wanting to connect and collaborate better with your professional colleagues or business partners? This means you might need to learn more office-specific vocabulary. Having a simple conversation with your colleagues might require you to understand the following concepts: sentence structure, tenses, verbs, and pronunciation. Learning these concepts might take you anywhere from 2-4 weeks of dedicated practice.
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Or maybe you want to learn Hindi and engage with your Hindi speaking in-laws or give a speech. This means you need to put more time into getting fluent in Hindi speaking. If you want to achieve this goal, it might take you anywhere from 2-4 months of intensive practice with a tutor.
Once you do a breakdown of your goal and the steps required to achieve the results, you will gain clarity on the steps that you need to take and the time commitment that is required to get fluent in Hindi.
Before you begin your Hindi language learning journey, you need to understand what resources will help you learn better and faster. Read on to understand the 5 ways in which you can get started.
5 Easy Ways to Learn Hindi Language
Learning any language can be daunting for the beginner. However, there are some effective methods that can help you pick up Hindi easily.
1. Practice with Native Hindi Speakers
It is difficult to find a better way to learn a language than speaking with native speakers. For some, this might be an unnerving experience but that’s okay.
You don’t have to worry about being correct as long as you are trying to put the right intention across. For example, try speaking as much Hindi as you can while mixing it with English words that you know. You can try this with friends, colleagues, and shopkeepers. Just start by asking them, “Hey, I want to say [this phrase]. How do you say [this phrase] in Hindi?”
Don’t worry about getting something wrong while speaking. Look at it as a learning experience that will improve your fluency in a short period.
2. Watching Hindi Movies and TV Shows
We think that this is the most enjoyable way to learn any language. India has an amazing Hindi language film industry which churns out around 800 films a year. While you may not have time to watch so many films and we certainly don’t recommend them all, there is enough choice in terms of genres for you to have an enjoyable watching experience.
Watch a Hindi language movie and set your subtitles to English. As you keep watching, you will realize that you will subconsciously pick up a few common words and phrases that are used in your daily life.
Another benefit of watching Hindi movies and TV shows is that it helps you imbibe the local north and west Indian culture and customs. This is something that will help you integrate with the local Hindi speaking population.
You can watch a lot of Hindi language content for free. There are also some paid options if you are interested in watching some well produced movies and TV shows. Here is a list of websites where you can watch Hindi content:
- Youtube (free / paid)
- Netflix (paid)
- Amazon Prime (paid)
- Hotstar (free / paid)
- Alt Balaji (free / paid)
- Sony LIV (free / paid)
3. Refer to Online Resources
The World Wide Web is an amazing place to get your hands on reference material to learn Hindi. These resources are free and can help you get a basic understanding of Hindi vocabulary and grammar concepts.
First and foremost, we would like to recommend Bhasha.io’s Learning Guides section. It has some good quality language learning guides for Indian languages. We are adding new content every month and you can benefit from it for free.
If you are stuck with a topic or question, you should simply google it. You will get more than enough resource pages which will help you with the answer to your questions.
4. Best Hindi Language Learning Mobile Apps
Daily practice of vocabulary and sentences gives you enormous benefits on your road toward fluency. Using a mobile app to play quizzes and memorize essential sentences helps make this process easier for you.
You can find these apps on both the Android Play Store and the iOS App Store. Check them out.
5. Enrolling in Hindi Language Courses
Finally, enrolling in a Hindi speaking course is the absolute best way to achieve success for beginners looking to learn Hindi.
All of the resources that we listed above depend on you being motivated to learn the language on your own. After working with thousands of students over the last 5 years, we know that there is an upper limit to this self-motivation. Once it runs dry, it becomes extremely difficult for the student to build up their motivation again.
In our experience, the most successful learning outcomes have been achieved by those students who enrolled in our structured learning program.
Our structured Hindi learning course has the following benefits:
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Access to high-quality learning materials and resources.
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A native trainer who can adapt to your learning needs and instantly answer your queries.
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Flexible scheduling of classes to accommodate your busy schedule.
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Online classes via Google Meet or Zoom which help you save time and effort on a commute to a local training center. And you can attend your Hindi class from anywhere in the world.
Our trainer assumes the role of your accountability partner and motivates you through the ups and downs of this process. It is because of our coaches that many of our students have crossed the finish line successfully.
Sounds exciting? Be sure to check out Bhasha's online Hindi classes, the best way of learning Hindi for beginners.
Guide to understanding Hindi pronunciation
Hindi possesses some unique sounds which might not come easily to your vocal palate. Here are some sounds that you need to know about:
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The difference between aspirated and unaspirated consonants: ಕ (ka) = क ಖ (kha) = ख
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The retroflex sounds: ट (ta) , ठ (tta) , ड (da) , ढ (dda) , ण (nna)
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The distinction between short and long vowels: ಅ (a) = अ ಆ (aa) = आ
Our trainers can give you personalized feedback and targeted vocal exercises which will help you develop authentic Hindi pronunciation much faster than through self-study alone.
Introduction to the Hindi alphabet
Hindi has its own script called Devanagari which is widely used in administration, media, and official work in the state of India.
Like other Indian languages, the script comprises vowels and consonants.
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Vowels: अ (a), आ (aa), इ (i), ई (ii), उ (u), ऊ (uu), ऋ (ri), ए (e), ऐ (ai), ओ (o), औ (au)
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Consonants: क (ka), ख (kha), ग (ga), घ (gha), ङ (nya), च (cha), छ (chha), ज (ja), झ (jha), ञ (nya), ट (ta), ठ (tha), ड (da), ढ (dha), ण (na), प (pa), फ (pha), ब (ba), भ (bha), म (ma), य (ya), र (ra), ल (la), व (va), श (sha), ष (sha), स (sa), ह (ha), क्ष (ksha), त्र (tra), ज्ञ (gya)
You will have to memorize these characters and practice writing them in your notebook to gain mastery over the Hindi script.
Bhasha.io’s Level 3 - Hindi Reading and Writing Classes help you learn the Devanagari script quickly and correctly. Contact our Program Advisor if you would like to enquire about this course.
Effective Strategies for Mastering Hindi
Planning your learning strategy is important if you want to successfully achieve your learning goals. We have a few pointers for you which we think can help you.
1. Practice Consistently
Consistent practice is non-negotiable when you are learning a new language. In fact, it is non-negotiable when you are learning any skill.
To be a consistent learner, you will need to dedicate time daily to your study. Different learners schedule time differently. Here are some options that you might find useful.
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Schedule a 30-minute block in the morning while you have your morning coffee or tea. Schedule the next block sometime in the late afternoon or early evening. This scheduling strategy is especially helpful for those who have mentally stressful day jobs. It helps to get your learning done early in the morning.
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For others, having a solid 30-60 minute block in the evening post-dinner also works out well.
To conclude, you need to schedule a block of time as per your work and home schedule and stick to it religiously. Use a free calendar application like Google Calendar with the notifications turned on.
2. Practice your Hindi vocabulary
However, every week you must revise all the words that you have learned. Ask a friend or significant others to take a Hindi quiz where they ask you the meanings of Hindi words at random.
Make a note of all the words that you get wrong and add it to your daily practice. Doing this consistently week after week will help you memorize the Hindi vocabulary easily.
If you get a word wrong, then remember to add it to your daily vocabulary practice. Following this process consistently week after week will help you remember the Hindi words effortlessly.
4. Reading and Writing Exercises
If you decide to learn reading and writing in Hindi in addition to speaking it, you should put in the work to learn the Devanagari script. Start writing the script characters first and repeat them over and over till you slowly start using the sounds to put together words from the language. You can start with simple Hindi words.
When you start learning new sentences, try writing them out in your notebook with a pen or pencil. Keep at it till you are able to write small paragraphs and then short essays.
If you want to get better at reading, the most accessible way to achieve this is by procuring Hindi language newspapers and story books. You can read Hindi language news online on apps such as Daily Hunt. You can also buy Hindi language story books, novels, and non-fiction books from Amazon or Flipkart.
5. Setting Realistic Goals
Learning a language is fulfilling but it is also a serious endeavor that requires discipline and dedication. So you must set the right goals for yourself.
Setting ambitious goals in a short span of time doesn’t end up working for the majority of learners. They ultimately run out of motivation due to a lack of results and then give up. It is better to set realistic and achievable goals.
You should give yourself 2-3 months to learn Hindi but make sure that you practise daily for 30-60 minutes. Use all the strategies that we have listed in this blog post and don’t feel discouraged if you feel that your progress is slower than you expected. Initially, it feels like that to everyone but consistent effort while being kind to oneself is the best way to push through.
6. Tracking Progress and Celebrating Milestones
Outline your learning plan and then set some learning milestones. These milestones can be simple such as 50 Hindi vocabulary words learned, 100 sentences memorized, a conversation with your shopkeeper, etc. Tracking your progress daily and celebrating your milestones. The more milestones you achieve, the more you will enjoy the process.
Tips for Overcoming Challenges
Learning Hindi can seem challenging to a beginner who wants to start from scratch but that needn’t be the case.
1. Stay Motivated
The crucial aspect of learning a new language is maintaining your motivation. Set your goals mindfully and celebrate your achievements. This is necessary to keep your motivation levels replenished so that you can enjoy the learning process.
Do these things to keep your motivation high:
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Outline why you want to learn Hindi. What is your goal?
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Try to visualize yourself as a fluent speaker of Hindi in the near future. What will this unlock for you? How will this change your life for the better?
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Celebrate every small victory that comes your way. You will need it. Try to be kind to yourself. It is difficult to achieve your objectives if you find yourself being self-critical.
2. Finding Inspiration in the local Indian Culture & Community
Try to fit into the local Indian culture and community. You can do this by learning history, the legends, the important festivals, and the amazing cuisine.
Participate in cultural events which are organized by the Indian community. This will help you gain an appreciation for the community and culture.
Here are some cultural events that you can participate in:
So, Can One Learn Hindi Easily?
Definitely, yes! But it will require dedication and effort from your side. Throughout this guide on ‘how to learn Hindi easily’, we have covered all the essential topics, strategies, and resources that a beginner would need to get started.
We hope that this guide will be useful for you. We are excited for you to learn Hindi and can’t wait to see and hear you speaking Hindi soon. If you need any help or if you are feeling stuck at any point in your Hindi learning, feel free to reach out to our Program Advisors. We will be happy to help you. Good luck!
