Fighting Hindi imposition: Tamil Nadu

‘Thinikadae thinikadae, Hindi ai thinikadae’ (contextual translation: ‘do not force feed Hindi’) proclaimed the banner as people marched down the streets of Tamil Nadu in 1965. Normal life ceased as protests transfigured into riots seamlessly. DMK which separated out from the DK (Dravidar Kazhagam) took stranglehold of the opportunity and lead the charge. Hindi was kept out of the state- temporarily.

Why am I bringing up a 52-year old topic? Because, it's happening again. The force-feeding of Hindi to South India is beginning again- the recent signage issue on a few highways in South India, the removal of Tamil from a few SBI ATM machines in Tamil Nadu and most importantly, the allegations against a certain multiplex which openly stated that it would not turn on A/C for Kannada movies are recent instances which has triggered me to think about the status of Hindi in the South Indian society. 

 

Tamil Nadu's fight against Hindi imposition has been going on since the pre-independence times. The three year protest and staunch opposition in the Madras Presidency led Lord Erskine, the British Governor to withdraw the proposal.

Post-Independence, the INC (Indian National Congress) attempted to force feed the language yet again. Hindi was about to be made a 'National Language' and a transition period of 15 years with English was supposed to help the non-Hindi speaking states to get used to official communication. But the twist in the tale was the Anti-Hindi agitations of 1965 which turned the tables. Hindi did not accomplish the status of 'National Language' and English prevailed as another official language of the country. The politics that surrounded the agitations fatally ended the INC's power in Tamil Nadu. Since then hitherto, they have been bitterly unsuccessful, losing presence every single day.  

History aside! Why have we Tamils always been so against imposing Hindi to us? The answer is simple- for the fear of loss of significance of Tamil art & culture. It is important to note that the states that did not stand up against compulsory Hindi learning have lost most of its art now. Films are a popular form of art- the Marathi film industry is the only unit north of the Vindhyas that has produced at least half the number of movies what Bollywood has produced last year. Such is the firm grip and dominance, Hindi film industry has gotten over the Northern India. On the contrary, the Southern regional cinema industry has thrived with numbers neck to neck with Bollywood, a remarkable accomplishment considering the audience base Bollywood has. I'm hurt when a few locals in Bengaluru say they do not watch Kannada movies- their allegiances supposedly lie with the Khans and Kapil Sharmas of Bollywood.

Karnataka is a perfect example of how being a very good host can also put you into trouble. They welcomed people from all parts of the country with both hands, warmly. In turn, their culture and language has not grown- sadly, the opposite has been happening. They fight for their language and culture having to promote it through various festivals and events. During my first few months in Bengaluru a few years ago, I used to walk into shops with my newly learnt words in Kannada, ready to speak. Instead, all I would get in response would be, ‘Kya chahiye, sir?' When I learn enough Kannada, I once asked the shop keeper why he spoke in Hindi when he was a native of the land. He said, 'How would I know if you know Kannada sir? Most people speak Hindi only.'

What was even more disheartening was to see almost no use of Kannada in Hubbali, Dharwad and Dandeli. I was absolutely shocked and my cousin, annoyed when every one spoke to us in Hindi. We should learn from Karnataka and funnily, not be good hosts. Tamil Nadu inherently has one unsaid rule. 'You are welcome here. If you want to survive here, learn our language.' This led to the spread of the language. Unlike Karnataka, most North Indians, settled for a long time in TN speak good Tamil. From the pani-puri wala to the pawn broker (no offence, but these are two professions which are usually taken up by North Indians), everyone in Tamil Nadu speak the language and hence the growth of it- not only within the South but also to various countries- Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius and South Africa.

The rest of the country has to understand a few things right. None in Tamil Nadu or South India are against the Hindi language, but the imposition of it. The feelings are simple. 'I will learn if I want to and need to. No thanks, until then.'

Without a strong government at the state, the Central Government is attempting to play dirty politics in TN now. The Modi wave never hit Tamil Nadu and every day, the feelings of people is only going against him and NDA. The central government should understand the sensitivity of the language issue and keep away from it. Else, the namesake presence of BJP in the state will also go down the drain. It is high time they took the moral out of INC's story that happened 52 years ago.

The feeling of bitterness against the central government and isolation has already been felt by the state in the Hydrocarbon issue and more such neglection will lead to a huge downfall of the central government's dwindling popularity in the state. The other Southern states will pick up cue from the happenings in TN- in fact they already have. Kerala and Tamil Nadu have historically been rejecting the national parties and the day Andhra, Telangana and Karnataka will do the same is not far off.

Yet again, I wish to reiterate- we are not against Hindi in milestones and highway signage, we are not against Hindi on ATM screens and we are not against Hindi movies being shown on theaters but if the costs Tamil (or Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu) to go out, THEN WE ARE!

India is complicated and solutions to the plethora of problems it has are rarely simple. I’ll leave you with a little anecdote about languages.

I was at Varkala sitting in a dimly lit restaurant over the cliff facing the beach with a couple of lovely Italian ladies. I had been backpacking across Kerala and had met them a day ago in Kalpetta and then co-incidentally in the hotel lobby at Varkala.

One of them asked me, ‘Can you write my name in Indiano? I want to tattoo it.’

My very little Italian skills helped me understand the question immediately. My friend was attempting to ask how to write her name in India’s language. Italian is called Italiano and hence she had fabricated the word, ‘Indiano.’

I scratched my head and told her, ‘There is no Indiano. We have several languages here in India.’

They looked at each other and then she asked me, ‘So what language did you speak to the bartender?’

I had spoken broken Malayalam and told her the same to which she replied, ‘Why broken?’

I said, ‘I come from Tamil Nadu where people speak a different language- Tamil.’

‘Oh but you live in Bangalore?’

‘Yes, Bangalore is in a different state. People speak Kannada.’

The other lady who was quietly listening to the conversation involuntarily spit out her beer and said, ‘Huh? How many languages do you speak here?’

‘1652 languages including dialects,’ I said, taking my first sip of the strong beer.