I just completed my first book in Esperanto—while still at the A1 level.
That’s not just a personal milestone; it makes a broader point.
It shows that languages can be learned far more rapidly than we assume—if the language is well-designed. This suggests that many of the deep-rooted problems we associate with illiteracy and linguistic inequality are not inevitable. They are design problems.
Imagine a world where a child—or even an adult from a rural or under-resourced background—can go from zero to basic reading, writing, and speaking proficiency in a matter of months. It’s possible. But it requires us to think differently.
Instead of forcing people to climb the steep mountain of English—with all its quirks, exceptions, and status baggage—we can build and promote conlangs (constructed languages) that are easier, fairer, and more inclusive. Imagine something like Hesperanto, a mix of Hindi and Esperanto, designed to be an alternative working language in India.
With such a system, people from non-English-speaking, vernacular backgrounds wouldn’t have to feel shame or inadequacy just because they don’t speak English well. They’d have another path—a faster, more empowering one.
That’s why this book is just the beginning. I plan to write nine more. Not just to make art, but to make a point: Language should be a bridge, not a barrier.
And yet, despite the potential, very little is being done to actively solve these problems.
It’s time we changed that.