CODE-SWITCHING AND HYBRID LINGUISTIC PRACTICES IN PAKISTANI DIGITAL MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY: A SOCIOLINGUISTIC ANALYSIS

Abstract

This research paper will explore the phenomenon of Urdu-English code switching and hybrid language use in digital media and entertainment sphere of Pakistani discourse. The paper aims to analyze the roles of bilingual communication in the construction of identity, prestige, humor, emotional realism, and consumer appeal, with the help of selected Pakistani dramas, films, advertisements, clips from social media, podcasts, and digital content created by influencers. Selected dramas are Hum Tum, Suno Chanda, Ehd-e-Wafa, Zindagi Gulzar Hai and Kabhi Main Kabhi Tum, while selected films are Karachi Se Lahore, Ho Mann Jahaan, Cake, Bin Roye, Jawani Phir Nahi Ani, and Punjab Nahi Jaungi. The research is qualitative, sociolinguistic and a discourse analysis. Character-linked discourse patterns, frequent lexical insertions, and scene-based observations of language are used for the study. The results indicate that English lexical items receive a positive connotation in the Pakistani media to convey modernity, education, confidence, digital literacy, professional identity, and cosmopolitanism, while Urdu signals intimacy, cultural grounding, and emotional force. The study concludes that hybrid language has been normalized in the media as one of the criteria to show urban identity and digital culture in Pakistan. It further claims that Pakistani English is a language that is losing its impersonality in entertainment, advertisements and social media conversations.