Delhi woman in Bengaluru tweets about not understanding Kannada ads, outrage follows

An IIIT-Delhi student, currently living in Bengaluru, has copped backlash for taking exception to Google ads in Kannada. Amisha Aggarwal, a computer science major, tweeted her take on Kannada-language ads this Thursday, pointing out that even though she lives in Bengaluru, she doesn’t speak or understand Kannada and should therefore not be shown Kannada ads on YouTube.

Her tweet sparked a massive row on social media, given that language is a contentious issue in Karnataka. The state has witnessed a pro-Kannada movement in the last few years, where some locals have demanded reservation in jobs for Kannada speakers. Several cases of non-Kannada speakers being attacked have also come to light in the Silicon Valley of India.

“Dear Google, just because I stay in Bangalore, doesn't mean I'll understand ads in Kannada,” Aggarwal wrote in her post which started a heated debate on Twitter.
Her post was immediately flooded with comments, mostly from Karnataka residents who asked her to leave the state if she could not learn its language.

“Dear non-Karnataka people, just because you are in Bangalore, doens't mean localites have to learn your language to converse with you,” wrote one person. “Just because you speak Hindi, everything can’t be in Hindi in Bengaluru. Learn Kannada or sit down,” another said.

“One day these Northies will make me a Kannada activist even if I don't want to become one. The arrogance and attitude they display is beyond normal level,” a third Twitter user posted in response to Aggarwal’s tweet.

Aggarwal later posted a clarification after receiving harsh criticism, saying she only wanted to provide feedback to Google about its algorithm which suggests ads to users. “This tweet was primarily a feedback to the ads algorithm. They should keep in consideration that just because someone changes their place, doesn't mean they should get all ads in that language,” she wrote.