‘Bengaluru belongs to Kannadigas’, Draws flak from the Internet

A man from Karnataka sparked a chatter online after posting a message directed at non-Kannada speakers arriving in the Silicon Valley of India. The man claimed that anyone who doesn’t speak or attempt to learn Kannada would be treated as an “outsider” in the city. He further declared that the IT capital of India “belongs to Kannadigas”.

“To, everyone coming to Bengaluru. You will be treated as an outsider in Bengaluru if you don’t speak Kannada or make an effort to speak Kannada. Write it down, Share it around. We ain’t joking. Bengaluru belongs to the Kannadigas period,” wrote an X (formerly known as Twitter) user.

The post, since being shared on September 6, has gone viral with over 5.5 million views and the numbers are still increasing. Many even took to the comments section of the post to share their thoughts.

“Lol. It only applies to Indians, I guess. If a foreigner comes, you guys will lick sambhar off his boots no matter which language he speaks,” said an individual.

Another added, “To, all Kannadigas Going to other states for your livelihood. You will not be treated as an outsider in other states if you don’t speak their languages or make an effort to speak. Write it down, share it around. We ain’t joking. You will be treated as an Indian anywhere.”

“Respect should be a mutual cooperation. Hope people who migrate to other states will respect the culture and I hope state people will too. Because it’s not easy to learn a language in just a matter of seconds it takes time,” expressed a third.

A fourth commented, “Yet you are using another outsider language English to publish this message. If you guys are so daring, then stop using English. Use Kannada to write on social media platforms also. Let’s see how you develop your language and state with that.”