A Bengaluru woman has sparked an online conversation about language learning after sharing a video praising the multilingual abilities of schoolchildren in the city.
A moment at a school football match
Taking to her Instagram account @coco_tones, the woman shared a short video recalling an incident she witnessed at a children’s football match. In the clip, she is heard saying, “I am very jealous of these Bengaluru kids. Recently I went to watch a kids football match and one kid wanted to ask me something. He came to me and he started talking in Hindi. I am not good at Hindi. But still I was trying to understand what he was telling. But eventually I gave up and I told him I can understand in Tamil.”
What happened next left her impressed. “That kid heard that and he switched to talking in Tamil. I replied him. He went to his friend and he told him the same thing in Kannada. I was like, wow! Those kids are 6th graders. And most of the kids there knew at least 3 languages. Meanwhile, me with 2 languages and still struggling to talk. These kids have insane language skills.”
Watch the clip here:
{{/usCountry}}Watch the clip here:
{{/usCountry}}She captioned the video simply as, “These kids are so cool.”
Video strikes a chord online
The clip has garnered more than 97,000 views, drawing praise and personal anecdotes from viewers who related to the experience. Many users pointed out that growing up in Bengaluru often means being exposed to several languages from an early age.
One user commented, “As a Bangalorean we know at least maximum 5 to 6 languages fluently and few other languages in learning process.” Another wrote, “So true, We are in Bangalore. My kids know 4 langues to speak, write and read . Thanks to Bangalore.”
Others shared their own linguistic journeys, with one saying, “I'm a Bangalorean and I speak Kannada (mother tongue), Tamil (to an extent), English (almost pro level), Hindi (because of school), can understand Malayalam, Tulu, Konkani.” A parent added, “Yes my daughter can speak 3 languages she is still 6years old,” while another reflected on learning habits, noting, “Kids learn languages as they have no complex that they may speak it wrong. Makes them learn faster.” Another comment summed it up by stating, “That is power of Bengaluru.”
HT.com has reached out to the user for her comments, and the copy will be updated once her response is received.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)