The short answer
Captions turn speech into written English. For many Deaf people in India, Indian Sign Language (ISL) is their first language and English is a second one, learned through text. Captions ask them to read a second language at the speed someone talks. Sign language gives them the same content in their own language, with the face carrying the tone. Captions are still worth having; the best answer is both.
ISL is a language, not English on the hands
Indian Sign Language has its own vocabulary, its own grammar and its own word order. It isn't a signed version of English, and it isn't the same as American or British Sign Language. Even its alphabet is different: ISL fingerspells with two hands, where ASL uses one.
In ISL the face does grammatical work. Expressions mark a question, a negative, or how strongly something is meant, alongside the hands. The Government of India recognises and promotes the language through the Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC), set up in 2015.
What captions do well
- They help hard-of-hearing people who read English comfortably.
- They help everyone watching without sound: on a train, in an office, late at night.
- They make video searchable, and they're quick and cheap to add.
Where captions fall short
- They're in a second language. For a Deaf viewer whose first language is ISL, reading English captions is like following a lecture in a language you learned at school.
- They move at speaking speed. People talk faster than most of us can comfortably read word for word, so viewers end up reading to keep up instead of watching.
- They flatten tone. A joke, a warning and a question can look the same in text. Emphasis, rhythm and emotion mostly disappear.
- They split attention. Eyes on the captions means eyes off the speaker, the slides and the room.
Side by side
| Captions | Sign language | |
|---|---|---|
| Language | Written English | ISL, a first language for many Deaf people |
| Grammar | English grammar | ISL's own grammar and word order |
| Tone and emotion | Mostly lost | Carried by the face and the signing |
| Best for | Hard-of-hearing readers, sound-off viewing, search | Deaf viewers whose first language is ISL |
| Availability today | Common and easy to add | Rare: too few interpreters for the need |
So why isn't everything signed?
Because it has depended on human interpreters, and there are far too few qualified ISL interpreters for every lecture, video, announcement and meeting in India. Interpreters are the gold standard, and nothing here replaces them. The problem is all the places where none is available.
Where SAYGUY fits
SAYGUY signs English in ISL, live or on recorded video, using an avatar whose every sign is recorded from real signers. It follows ISL's own grammar rather than swapping English words for signs, and when a word has no sign yet, it fingerspells it or leaves it out instead of guessing. It's built for the places an interpreter can't be: every class, every video, every conversation.
Common questions
Are captions enough for Deaf viewers?
Often not. Captions are written English, and for many Deaf people in India English is a second language learned through text. Sign language gives them the same content in their first language. The best approach is to offer both.
Is Indian Sign Language the same as American Sign Language?
No. Indian Sign Language (ISL) is a separate language with its own vocabulary and grammar. Knowing ASL or BSL does not mean someone understands ISL, and the reverse is true too.
Should I add captions or sign language to my videos?
Both, if you can. Captions help hard-of-hearing viewers who read English, people watching without sound, and search. Sign language serves Deaf viewers whose first language is ISL.
Does SAYGUY replace human interpreters?
No. Qualified human interpreters are the gold standard. There are far too few of them for every lecture, video and meeting, and SAYGUY is for the many places where no interpreter is available.
See the difference
Watch a real Stanford lecture beside its ISL translation, then join the waitlist.
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