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Journalism of Courage
Bengaluru is back in the spotlight due to a recent incident involving language imposition. A video making the rounds on X captures a heated exchange between a local resident and a person who does not speak Kannada, raising important questions about cultural respect and language in Karnataka.
In the clip, a local man confronts the non-Kannada speaker, expressing frustration over his inability to communicate in Kannada after living and working in the state for 12 years. He accuses the individual of showing “disrespect” towards the local culture.
“You want a job here, you want a salary here, but you don’t want the language here,” the local remarks. He concludes with, “At least learn Kannada, okay? This is Bengaluru, not Mumbai or Gujarat,” asserting the importance of their regional identity with, “This is our state, our India.”
Watch the viral video:
The video posted by user ManjuKBye garnered considerable attention, garnering over 83,000 views. Numerous users expressed their disapproval and shared their opinions in the comments.
One user wrote, “I’m from Punjab, living in Gurgaon (Haryana) since past 18 years, never forced to learn and speak Haryanavi. That’s the best part of our country. Imagine Diljit doing a concert in Karnataka and being asked to sing in Kannada.”
Another user said, “Why should he learn? Is forcing to learn language the new criteria to move to different state. The language jingoistic people just want to harass outsiders. Not everyone is keen to learn different language because they are too much other responsibilities.”
A third user commented, “You support Virat Kohli and he’s part of RCB for 16yrs. Ask him to learn Kannad or else tell the RCB management not to retain him. Can you do.. please.”
