TV
Yesterday’s incident at the Surya Nagar branch of SBI in Karnataka underlined what has been in evidence for some time now: Kannadigas are not ready anymore to put up with ‘outsiders’ who don’t speak the local language. Even cosmopolitan Bengaluru, a melting pot of people from all over the country where speaking in Hindi was perfectly okay till a few years ago, is now becoming increasingly intolerant of those who don’t speak Kannada.
No place for parochialism
The incident got me thinking. Is something like this possible in Odisha? Is it even desirable in the first place in a state that has long prided itself on its all-embracing culture? Just on a whim, I flagged the two questions on social media. As is only natural in such a sensitive matter, the responses were mixed. But it was a huge relief to find that the overwhelming majority of opinions echoed my own view on the subject: such a movement would be a negation of all that Odisha and Odias stand for. In the all-assimilating Land of Lord Jagannath, there is simply no place for parochialism of any kind, whether in terms of language, region, religion or something else.
Make no mistake. Such a view does not mean a lack of pride in one’s own language. My heart – and. I am sure the hearts of all those who voiced their opinion against a Karnataka type language supremacy movement – beats for the Odia language as loud as those who are in favour of such a movement. But when pride in a language – or anything else, for that matter - degenerates into parochialism, it goes against the spirit of ‘unity in diversity’ that is at the heart of the 5000-year-old Indian civilization. I, for one, have always taken pride in the fact that we Odias have always welcomed outsides of all hues, irrespective of the place they come from and the language they speak (and dreaded the prospect of a language chauvinism agitation that we have seen earlier in Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra and are now witnessing in Karnataka!)
If we need a movement, it has to look inward
If we need a movement, it has to look inward. We need Odias to speak, read and write the language a lot more than they are doing at present. Lame excuses like “I was born and brought up in ….” Or “I studied in an English medium school” will simply not wash. If you are born into an Odia family, you must know – and use – the language, irrespective of where you are born or grow up. Period. There is simply no excuse for not knowing Odia for someone born an Odia. And those who flaunt their lack of knowledge in Odia and wear it like a badge of honour deserve nothing but utter collective disdain from all those who take pride in their language. The movement for all government business to be done, launched by the Bhasha Andolan, must continue with even greater vigour and taken to its logical end.
But hounding outsiders for their inability to speak Odia would be against the Odia ethos. Let’s get one thing clear. There is a big difference between the inability of an outsider to speak the local language and his/her refusal to speak it. The reaction of the SBI manager in Karnataka clearly falls into the second category. Her blunt responses to a customer’s plea to speak in Kannada - “I will not speak in Kannada”, “I shall speak only in Hindi”, “I work in India, not in Karnataka” - were not only revoltingly arrogant, they were highly irresponsible and grossly insensitive. She has been rightly transferred for her vile behaviour. But taking this thing to the other extreme and demanding that every outsider must speak the local language or ‘face the consequences” is a violation of the right of movement given to every Indian by the Constitution. How can you force someone, who may have come on a short visit to your state – on business or for pleasure – to speak the local language and refuse to serve him/her for that ‘crime’? Sensitivity is a two-way street. If you expect sensitivity from the outsider, you must also be sensitive to him/her. The SBI manager could perhaps have saved the day – and a whole lot of embarrassment - for herself if only she had been a little less arrogant - and a little more polite – and explained to the aggrieved customer that she had joined recently and was trying to learn Kannada. Arrogance breeds arrogance. Sensitivity breeds sensitivity.
Let us, by all means and with all the power at our command, protest against arrogance of the kind displayed by the Karnataka SBI manager. But at the same time, let us not allow ourselves to be drawn into a chauvinist movement like the one some people are trying to build in Karnataka.
(DISCLAIMER: This is an opinion piece. The views expressed are the author’s own and have nothing to do with OTV’s charter or views. OTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.)
