'18 years in Bengaluru, still no Kannada': Man says friend now calls Kannadigas biased

The post struck a chord with locals, some of whom shared experiences of people living in Karnataka for years without making an effort to learn Kannada.

A Bengaluru resident’s post about his friend refusing to learn Kannada even after 18 years in the city has triggered a sharp debate on social media over language and local identity.

The reaction comes amid growing discussions about the importance of learning Kannada for those who live and work in the state.(AFP FILE PHOTO)

“After 18 years in Bangalore, my friend hasn't voted or learnt Kannada. My initial efforts to teach her conversational phrases didn't work out. Recently, she said Kannadigas are biased. By the way, our interactions are now limited,” Prajwal Bhat, an X user wrote.

Read his post here:

The post struck a chord with many users, some of whom shared similar experiences of people living in Karnataka for years without making an effort to learn the local language.

“This is bad, even after living in one place for 18 years someone not learning the local language is really bad,” one user commented.

Another said, “Shallowness at peak. Has he/she been disrespectful, rude, insulting, patronising to you? Obviously you speak English so communication is not an issue. Just random typing to get some views.”

A third user shared a personal anecdote,“I had a similar situation. My friend from Tamil Nadu was a hardcore fanatic. He stayed in Bangalore for nearly 15 years and never learnt a single word of Kannada. He used to say, ‘What is the need to learn? I am able to manage without learning.’ Staying here, he used to support Tamil Nadu on the Cauvery issue. I wonder how I tolerated him for so long. He moved to TN a couple of years ago and I cut all communication.”

Some users highlighted the pride and effort they take in learning local languages. “I am from Rajasthan. I stayed three months in Punjab and learnt Punjabi. Now I stay in Karnataka and I’ve picked up a mix of Tulu and Kannada. Learning a language is an achievement,” another X user said.

The reactions comes amid growing discussions in Karnataka about the importance of learning Kannada for those who live and work in the state, especially in cities like Bengaluru which attract a large migrant population.