Video: German Woman Living In Kerala Explains Why She Speaks English With An Indian Accent

There are several videos that showcase foreigners learning about Indian culture. It could be through art, dance, food, or even learning various Indian languages. Now, a video of a German woman explaining why she speaks English with a distinctly Indian accent has grabbed the internet's attention. The clip, shared on Instagram, features Klara, a German teacher currently living in India. It shows her addressing a common question she receives: "Why does this white girl have an Indian accent when she speaks in English? She's not Indian."

Responding to this, Klara clarified, "No, I'm not Indian. I'm actually German and I should have a German accent while speaking in English. But, I'll tell you why I have an Indian accent."

"One reason is that I only talk to Indians in English. So, obviously, you adapt to what you hear. If I only talk to Indians, I will hear the Indian accent. So, I'm going to adapt to it and I will also talk like that," she continued. 

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A post shared by ക്ലാര - Klara (@keralaklara)

Further, she explained, "The second reason is that I speak Malayalam. And while speaking Malayalam, you don't say everything in pure Malayalam. You use English words in between. And how do you pronounce those English words? In an Indian accent. Imagine I want to say, I want a fridge in Malayalam. I pronounce 'fridge' like Indian English. Now imagine I would use British English. I think that's the main reason."

Since being shared, Klara's post has gone viral, garnering more than 638,000 views and over 24,000 likes. 

Reacting to it, one user wrote, "My American accent and cadence changes based on who I am speaking to as well! I didn't notice until my son asked me why I was talking to an Indian man with an Indian accent. And another lady asked me why I was speaking so fast when most speak slowly here in Georgia- she was from New York. We adapt to be understood!" 

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"I would speak English with an Indian accent when conversing with elderly Indians because that felt more natural, even though it would drive my family crazy!" commented another. 

"Your accent clearly shows a south Indian influence to your English," said a third user. "Wow. So you know German, Malayalam, English accent, Indian accent English. That's awesome," expressed another. 

"Your accent is particularly specific to Kerala. Accents in each region differ and the Kerala accent is particularly distinct," wrote one user.