Hindi, national language: X user's ‘perfect T-shirt’ for Bengaluru trip goes viral, internet warns of risk

A viral image of two men in 'Hindi, National Language' T-shirts sparked controversy, amassing over 3 million views.

The debate over whether Hindi is India’s national language has reignited after a recent post on X (formerly Twitter) featuring two men wearing T-shirts that read "Hindi, National Language" during their Bengaluru trip. The image quickly went viral, particularly among Kannadiga users, sparking anger and frustration as many accused the duo of disrespecting regional languages.

X users in 'Hindi, national language' T-shirts.(X)

In response to the backlash, X user Harsh defended his post, stating, "Most of us already know that there is no national language in India. But South Indians are being offended as if Hindi were really our national language. This clearly shows their hate towards people who speak Hindi. And the fact is, we don't care which language you speak when you come to the North." However, his comments only fueled further outrage among many users, with some expressing their discontent through harsh remarks.

Check out the post here:

The image garnered over 3 million views, 24,000 likes, and 2,500 shares.

How did the X users react to the post?

"Your life will be at risk in Bangalore," one user warned, while others humorously responded, "Belt mt phan ke jana vo khud dene ayenge tumko" (They’ll come to give you a belt). Another user added, "Autowaale se joote khayegaa" (You’ll get hit by shoes from the auto drivers).

Despite the controversy, some users attempted to clarify the issue, acknowledging the sentiment of Hindi speakers while also pointing out the constitutional reality: "Hindi is not the National Language of India. In fact, there is no concept of a 'Language of India' stated anywhere in the Constitution."

As the situation escalated, several users edited the original photo, replacing the slogan with "Hindi is not our national language" in protest. Memes mocking Harsh’s post also started circulating, further amplifying the backlash.