Linguist Frank Smith has said, “Language is not a genetic gift, it is a social gift (language is not a genetic gift, it is a social gift). Meaning that no person is born with the ability to speak a particular language from birth. Language comes from social behavior. This is the gift that we are given to us through family, friends, community and culture.
A statement given by RSS leader Bhaiya Ji Joshi in Mumbai came into the discussion. Bhaiya ji Joshi said that ‘Mumbai does not have a single language. Therefore, there is no need to learn Marathi to come to Mumbai or stay here. He made this statement on 5 March 2025 in Marathi at a public event in Vile Parle.
In Mumbai and Maharashtra, Marathi language is considered a symbol of cultural and political identity. The politics there is affected by Marathi identity. Bhaiya ji Joshi’s statement was immediately caught by the opposition. Uddhav Thackeray demanded action on him.
Seeing the growing controversy, Bhaiya Ji Joshi said that his statement was misunderstood. He later said in a statement that his statement has caused some misunderstanding. He was talking about co-existence of various languages, but he wants to make it clear that the language of Mumbai and Maharashtra is Marathi and all the people living here should learn Marathi language.
Bhaiya Ji Joshi may have given clarification, but he has re -given air to the questions related to the language in Mumbai and the politics related to it. Significantly, Bhaiya Ji Joshi said that the language of Ghatkopar is Gujarati. Similarly, you will find fewer people speaking Hindi in Girgaon. There you will find Marathi speaking people. People coming to Mumbai do not need to learn Marathi. “
Let us understand which language is spoken by how many people in Maharashtra’s capital and India’s commercial capital Mumbai.
Mumbai is a city of many cultures and diverse identity. At present, Mumbai has a population of 2 crore 20 lakhs. Marathi is the official language of Maharashtra and is the most spoken language in Mumbai. This original is the mother tongue of the Maharashtrian population and its cultural significance is also very high.
Marathi
According to the Indian Express, the number of people who described Marathi as their mother tongue in Mumbai in 2011 was 44.04 lakhs. In 2011, 35 to 42 percent of people in Mumbai called Marathi their mother tongue. In 2011, this number was declined by 2.64 per cent in 2011 as compared to 2001.
In 2001, the number of people calling Marathi as mother tongue in Mumbai was 45.23 lakhs.
Interestingly, this change is also clear in the areas situated on the banks of Mumbai, where both Thane and Raigad districts have seen an increase of 80 percent in the number of Hindi speaking residents.
Significantly, the next mass and language calculation was to be done in 2021. But this could not happen due to Corona. Therefore, the linguistic data of 2021 is not available.
Hindi
Hindi is the only language in Mumbai whose number of speakers has increased tremendously. In 2001, the number of people describing Hindi as mother tongue in Mumbai was 25.98 percent. In 2011, this number increased to 35.98 lakhs. This is an increase of about 40 percent.
It is believed that the number of Hindi speakers in Mumbai has increased due to migration on the scale in Mumbai in search of employment from Hindi belt states.
Bombay Hindi
Bombayya is a mixed form of Hindi, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati and English. This is a colloquial language, which is spoken well on the streets. It has no special number of speakers, because it is a hybrid language, which is used according to the context instead of the mother tongue. And it does not have a separate category in government figures.
Gujarati
The number of Gujarati speakers in Mumbai has also declined. In 2001, 14.34 lakh people recorded Gujarati as their mother tongue. But in 2011, this number increased to 14.28 lakhs.
Urdu
The number of people who described Urdu as their tongue has also fallen in Mumbai. In 2001, 16.87 lakh people used to call Urdu as their Madri tongue but in 2011 this number was recorded at 14.59 lakhs. Let us know that these figures are based on the 2011 census. The 2021 census could not be held in the country.
English
English is widely spoken as a second language, especially between educated and professional classes. It is used in education, business and administration, but it is rarely mother tongue.
The number of English speakers is not available in the census. But English is understood and spoken fluently by an important part of the population of Mumbai. Estimates show that millions of people use it as another language.
The language bouquets of the Mumbai city include languages ​​like Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali, Malayalam, Konkani, Sindhi and Bhojpuri, which are spoken by migrant communities from different parts of India.
Collectively, these languages ​​are about 10–15% of the population. Tamil, Telugu, Kannada are spoken by South Indian communities, millions of people use these languages ​​for communication. Bengali is also included in this list. Apart from this, a large number of people also speak Konkani language of Maharashtra.