Last update:November 16, 2024, 2:17 p.m. IST

The Zoho founder expressed his support for the idea of ​​encouraging non-native residents of Bengaluru to learn Kannada.

Social media users were not happy with his opinion. (Photo credits:

In Bangalore, there were frequent clashes during which Kannadigas urged non-Kannada speakers to learn the local language. Recently, Sridhar Vembu, CEO of Zoho, spoke out on the issue, responding to a remark on X (formerly Twitter). He said Kannada should be spoken by anyone who considers Bangalore their “home”, calling it “disrespectful” not to do so. Vembu’s response came in reaction to a photo showing two individuals wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the words “Hindi National Language”. The post was captioned ‘Perfect t-shirt for a trip to Bangalore’, prompting the CEO’s comment on the importance of respecting the local language.

Commenting on another post from user X, Vembu wrote, “If you make Bengaluru your home, you should learn Kannada and your children should learn Kannada. Not doing so after living in Bangalore for many years is disrespectful. I often ask our employees in Chennai coming from other states to make an effort to learn Tamil after coming here. »

The Zoho CEO’s comment garnered over a million views and several comments. His post received mixed reactions from social media users.

A user said, “I have many Kannada friends in Mumbai, who have been living here for decades. Nobody speaks Marathi. Not a word. Fair?”

Another commented: “Great sir. Let’s divide the country and create borders with the requirement of an IELTS type certificate in the local language for entry. Just before this, our country’s slogan ‘Unity in Diversity’ is expected to be immersed in Ganga in Varanasi. »

“Even simple openness and curiosity towards language and culture is enough, entropy will decrease,” wrote one X user.

“You look immature here.” Being disrespectful to a language or culture is unacceptable, but is not learning a language disrespectful? Logic dies there,” remarked another.

This push to learn Kannada is part of a broader, ongoing debate about the importance of local languages ​​in India’s urban centers, particularly in states like Karnataka.

As Bangalore evolves as a global technology power, an influx of non-native professionals from India and overseas has changed the city’s linguistic environment. Many of these professionals speak primarily in English and Hindi.