25 Essential Marathi Phrases for Travelers to Maharashtra

The auto-rickshaw driver in Pune quotes you a price. The vendor at Dadar market is explaining something about the mangoes in rapid-fire Marathi. A shopkeeper in Kolhapur is waiting for your answer. Hindi will get you by in most urban situations — but speaking even a handful of Marathi phrases changes how people respond. Not because they expect it, but because they don't expect it. The effort registers.

These 25 phrases cover the situations travelers actually encounter: greetings, asking prices, finding their way, and what to say when something goes wrong. They're organized by situation, not by grammar, because that's how you'll need them.

Greetings: Formal, Informal, and How to End a Conversation

The standard greeting in Maharashtra is नमस्कार (Namaskar) [nəməskaːr] — not नमस्ते, which Maharashtrians associate with Hindi-speaking regions. Saying नमस्कार signals that you know whose language you're in.

For leaving, the most natural option is येतो (yeto) [jeːtoː] said by a man, or येते (yete) [jeːteː] by a woman. It literally means "I'm going" but functions as a warm farewell. More formal situations call for जपून राहा (japūn rāhā) [dʒəpuːn raːɦaː] — "take care."

Situation	Devanagari	Romanization	IPA	English
Universal greeting	नमस्कार	Namaskar	/nəməskaːr/	Hello / Greetings
How are you? (polite)	कसे आहात?	Kase āhāt?	/kəseː aːɦaːt/	How are you?
I'm doing well	मी मजेत आहे	Mī majet āhe	/miː mədʒeːt aːɦeː/	I'm doing well
Thank you (formal)	धन्यवाद	Dhanyavād	/dʱənjaːʋaːd/	Thank you
Excuse me / Sorry	माफ करा	Māf karā	/maːf kəraː/	Excuse me / Sorry
Farewell (m)	येतो	Yeto	/jeːtoː/	I'm off / Goodbye (m)
Farewell (f)	येते	Yete	/jeːteː/	I'm off / Goodbye (f)

माफ करा (Māf karā, excuse me / sorry) [maːf kəraː] is essential for getting attention in a crowd, apologizing for bumping into someone, or politely interrupting. It's the phrase that opens a hundred conversations. The Marathi greetings guide has the full greeting system including time-of-day variants and Mumbai's casual काय चाललंय openers.

Transactions: Buying, Bargaining, and Paying

Markets and street vendors in Maharashtra reward Marathi. Urban malls operate in English, but the vendors at Dadar Phool Bazar, Mahatma Phule Market in Pune, or any weekly bazaar in the Konkan will respond differently when you engage in Marathi.

Three phrases anchor every transaction:

किती? (Kitī?) [kɪtiː] — "How much?" Short, universally understood, appropriate anywhere. For a slightly more formal phrasing: याची किंमत किती आहे? (Yācī kimmat kitī āhe?) [jaːtʃiː kɪmːət kɪtiː aːɦeː] — "What is the price of this?"

खूप महाग आहे (Khūp mahāg āhe) [kʰuːp məɦaːɡ aːɦeː] — "It's too expensive." Not aggressive, just factual. Vendors who deal with tourists daily know what this phrase means socially.

Sealing the deal uses a gender-split form that learners often miss:

• घेतो (gheto) [ɡʱeːtoː] — "I'll take it" — said by a man
• घेते (ghete) [ɡʱeːteː] — "I'll take it" — said by a woman

Getting this right — using the form that matches your own gender — marks you as someone who has actually studied Marathi, not just learned a few tourist phrases.

For the bill at any sit-down establishment: बिल द्या (Bil dyā) [bɪl djaː] — "Please bring the bill."

Directions: Finding Your Way Across the State

Navigation phrases get used dozens of times a day in a new city. Memorize these five and you have the skeleton of every directions exchange:

Devanagari	Romanization	IPA	English
कुठे आहे?	Kuṭhe āhe?	/kʊʈʰeː aːɦeː/	Where is it?
डावीकडे	Dāvīkaḍe	/daːʋiːkəɖeː/	To the left
उजवीकडे	Ujvīkaḍe	/udʒʋiːkəɖeː/	To the right
सरळ जा	Saraḷ jā	/sərəɭ dʒaː/	Go straight
किती वेळ लागेल?	Kitī veḷ lāgel?	/kɪtiː ʋeɭ laːɡeːl/	How long will it take?

The standard construction for asking location: [place name] + कुठे आहे? So: रेल्वे स्टेशन कुठे आहे? (Relve Sṭeśan kuṭhe āhe?) — "Where is the railway station?" or हॉस्पिटल कुठे आहे? (Hospiṭal kuṭhe āhe?) — "Where is the hospital?"

One directional detail worth knowing: Marathi speakers giving directions often use landmark references more than street names, especially outside city centers. Getting an answer that uses संपूर्ण चौकापर्यंत जा (samūrṇa chaukāparyant jā, "go until the full intersection") and then turns is common. पुन्हा सांगाल का? (Punhā sāṅgāl kā?) [punaː saːŋɡaːl kaː] — "Could you repeat that?" — buys you time and usually prompts a slower, simpler rephrase.

Emergencies: Phrases You Hope to Never Use

Four phrases for situations that require no context, no conversation, and no grammar uncertainty:

मदत करा! (Madat karā!) [mədət kəraː] — "Help!" This is your universal distress call. Clear, understood by everyone.

डॉक्टर हवा आहे (Ḍōkṭar havā āhe) [ɖɔːkʈər həʋaː aːɦeː] — "I need a doctor." The full form मला डॉक्टर हवा आहे (Malā ḍōkṭar havā āhe) is slightly more complete, but even just डॉक्टर said with urgency communicates the request.

पोलीस (Polīs) [poliːs] — "Police." Again, a single word said with appropriate urgency is enough.

माझे हॉटेल [X] आहे (Mājhe hōṭel [X] āhe) [maːdʒeː hoːʈel aːɦeː] — "My hotel is [name]." This phrase becomes useful when you're lost and need to communicate your destination to someone trying to help. Write the hotel name in Roman script on your phone and show it while saying this phrase.

Emergency numbers in Maharashtra: 100 for police, 108 for medical emergencies. These work across the state. In Mumbai, the BEST helpline (1800-22-1232) covers public transport issues, and the बृहन्मुंबई Municipal Corporation helpline (1916) handles civic emergencies.

Mumbai-Specific: Tapori Speech vs. Pune Standard

The Marathi you hear in Mumbai's chawls and markets is not the Marathi taught in classrooms. The Mumbai variety — often called Tapori or Bambaiyya Marathi — mixes in Hindi, Urdu, and English in ways that would make a Pune litterateur wince. Knowing the difference prevents confusion.

Standard Pune Marathi says मी येतोय (Mī yetoY) [miː jeːtoːj] for "I'm coming." Mumbai street Marathi might say अपुन येतोय (Apun yetoY) [əpun jeːtoːj] — using apun (a Bambaiyya pronoun for "I" or "we" with no standard Marathi equivalent). Or it goes all the way to Hindi: "मैं आ रहा हूँ" with a Marathi accent.

For travelers in Mumbai: भारी (Bhārī) [bʱaːriː] means "awesome / excellent" in colloquial speech (not the standard meaning of "heavy"). You'll hear it constantly. झक्कास (Jhakkās) [dʒʰəkːaːs] is similarly enthusiastic approval — originally a word meaning sharp or flashy, now pure Mumbai slang for something great.

For travelers in Pune: the city's speakers tend to be more self-conscious about "correct" Marathi and more likely to shift to English or Hindi if they sense you're struggling. Persisting in Marathi — even imperfect Marathi — earns genuine appreciation. Pune speakers appreciate the effort more visibly than Mumbaikars, who hear foreign speakers less rarely.

Standard phrases work in both cities. The difference is in the casual layer on top, and you'll absorb that from context quickly.

A Quick Reference: The 25 Phrases

#	Devanagari	Romanization	English
1	नमस्कार	Namaskar	Hello
2	कसे आहात?	Kase āhāt?	How are you? (polite)
3	मी मजेत आहे	Mī majet āhe	I'm doing well
4	धन्यवाद	Dhanyavād	Thank you
5	माफ करा	Māf karā	Excuse me / Sorry
6	येतो / येते	Yeto / Yete	Goodbye (m/f)
7	जपून राहा	Japūn rāhā	Take care
8	किती?	Kitī?	How much?
9	याची किंमत किती आहे?	Yācī kimmat kitī āhe?	What's the price of this?
10	खूप महाग आहे	Khūp mahāg āhe	Too expensive
11	घेतो / घेते	Gheto / Ghete	I'll take it (m/f)
12	बिल द्या	Bil dyā	Please bring the bill
13	कुठे आहे?	Kuṭhe āhe?	Where is it?
14	डावीकडे	Dāvīkaḍe	To the left
15	उजवीकडे	Ujvīkaḍe	To the right
16	सरळ जा	Saraḷ jā	Go straight
17	किती वेळ लागेल?	Kitī veḷ lāgel?	How long will it take?
18	पुन्हा सांगाल का?	Punhā sāṅgāl kā?	Could you repeat that?
19	मदत करा!	Madat karā!	Help!
20	डॉक्टर हवा आहे	Ḍōkṭar havā āhe	I need a doctor
21	पोलीस	Polīs	Police
22	माझे हॉटेल X आहे	Mājhe hōṭel X āhe	My hotel is X
23	मला मराठी येत नाही	Malā Marāṭhī yet nāhī	I don't speak Marathi
24	हळू बोला	Haḷū bolā	Speak slowly
25	तुम्हाला इंग्रजी येते का?	Tumhālā Ingraji yete kā?	Do you speak English?

Two of those final phrases deserve a moment. मला मराठी येत नाही (Malā Marāṭhī yet nāhī) [məlaː mərɑːʈʰiː jeːt naːɦiː] is the honest fallback when a conversation exceeds your current level — it signals goodwill and prompts the other person to switch. And हळू बोला (Haḷū bolā) [həɭuː bolaː] — "speak slowly" — is probably the phrase you'll use most on day two of your trip. When someone realizes you're genuinely trying to communicate in Marathi, they often accelerate. This phrase brings things back to a speed you can follow.

Marathi's question words like कुठे (kuṭhe, where) and किती (kitī, how much) carry a lot of weight in this list. If you want to understand how they work grammatically and produce your own questions beyond this fixed set, the Marathi question words guide for कोण, काय, कुठे, and more builds the full system from the ground up.

None of these phrases require fluency to use well. Pronunciation matters more than grammar at this stage — a correctly said नमस्कार from a foreigner lands better than a grammatically perfect sentence delivered in a monotone. Start with the greeting and the price question, and build from there.

The Learn Marathi app by Brightwood Apps covers all of these travel phrases in its first three units, with native Pune-accent audio so you can hear the exact pronunciation — including where the stress falls in words like धन्यवाद and कुठे आहे — before you step off the plane. Available on the App Store.