India GOWhat language is spoken in Pune
The language of Pune is Marathi: it is the mother tongue of about two in three residents, and the city's own speech shaped standard written Marathi. Hindi is widely spoken too, since the city draws students and workers from all over India, and English is enough in hotels, cafes and tourist places.
Marathi
मराठी
Hindi
हिन्दी
English
English is enough in tourist places
English
Who speaks what
Mother tongues in the Pune Municipal Corporation area at the 2011 census:
| Language | Share |
|---|---|
| Marathi | 67.9% |
| Hindi | 13.1% |
| Urdu | 3.78% |
| Marwari | 2.60% |
| Gujarati | 2.25% |
| Telugu | 1.99% |
| Kannada | 1.92% |
| Others | 6.43% |
The Muslim community speaks Dakhni, the Deccan form of Urdu, and Gujarati and Marwari belong largely to the business community. The real mix is wider than a census suggests: with 517 colleges, Pune is often called the Oxford of the East, and its IT corridors draw people from every state, so Hindi and English are the everyday common ground between newcomers.
Marathi in brief
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language, the official language of Maharashtra, with about 83 million speakers at the 2011 census, the third largest number of native speakers in India. The Government of India has given it the status of a classical language.
It is written in Balbodh, the Marathi variant of Devanagari, so signs look much like Hindi ones, and many words are close to their Hindi cousins (pani and paani, water). But grammar and much everyday vocabulary differ: they are two languages, not dialects of one.
Pune matters to the language more than most cities: the dialect of its educated elite was adopted as the standard when written Marathi was codified. Its literature goes back much further. Sant Dnyaneshwar, whose samadhi is at Alandi just north of the city, wrote the Dnyaneshwari, a Marathi commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, in the 13th century.
Getting by without Marathi
Without Marathi you will manage fine. English is enough in hotels, cafes, the Koregaon Park restaurants and at the sights.
The gaps are in the old peths, the bazaars and with auto-rickshaw drivers, who prefer to name a price rather than run the meter. Booking autos and cabs through Uber, Ola or Rapido settles the fare before you sit down, with no negotiation in any language. In the markets a calculator or a phone screen does the rest. More in getting around Pune.
Five Marathi words to start with
Written in Devanagari, with a rough Latin transliteration.
- नमस्कार (namaskar) — Hello and goodbye, for any time of day.
- धन्यवाद (dhanyavad) — Thank you.
- हो (ho) — Yes.
- नाही (nahi) — No, not.
- पाणी (pani) — Water.
FAQ
Which language is mostly used in Pune?
Marathi. At the 2011 census it was the mother tongue of 67.9% of people in the Pune Municipal Corporation area, followed by Hindi at 13.1%.
Is English spoken in Pune?
Yes. English is enough in hotels, cafes, restaurants and at tourist sites; it is harder going in the old bazaars.
Is Marathi similar to Hindi?
Related, not the same. Both are Indo-Aryan and written in Devanagari (Marathi in its Balbodh variant), and many words are close, but grammar and everyday vocabulary differ.
Why is Pune called the Oxford of the East?
Because of its educational institutions: the city has 517 colleges and a long tradition of schools and universities.
Do I need to learn Marathi to visit Pune?
No. English covers hotels and sights, and ride-hailing apps remove the need to negotiate fares. A namaskar and a dhanyavad are still worth learning.
Sources (8)
Facts checked: 15 October 2026. Prices and hours are approximate; check locally.
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