'If Bengaluru is your home now, you should learn Kannada': Zoho's Sridhar Vembu

Sridhar Vembu is the CEO of Zoho.

Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu expressed support for a call to embrace Kannada learning among non-native residents in Bengaluru. The discussion began with a tweet by a Bengaluru resident, who observed how many people don’t hesitate to pick up European languages when traveling abroad but often resist learning local languages within India, particularly Kannada.

The X user, who is not a native Kannada speaker herself, shared her journey of learning the language over the past decade, noting that even limited effort has been appreciated by local residents.

Vembu agreed, saying, “If you make Bengaluru your home, you should learn Kannada and your kids should learn Kannada. Not doing so after living many years in Bengaluru is disrespectful.” He added that he encourages his Chennai employees from other states to learn Tamil as a way to respect their surroundings and foster community integration.

This call for Kannada learning taps into a long-standing conversation around local languages in India’s urban centres, especially in states like Karnataka. With Bengaluru emerging as a global tech hub, an influx of non-native professionals from across India and abroad has shifted the city’s linguistic landscape. Many of these professionals primarily communicate in English and Hindi.

The push for learning Kannada, especially from locals, fuelled in part by concerns over cultural identity in the face of rapid urbanisation and migration has left a bitter taste in the mouth for many who faced discrimination for not knowing the language.

Some residents argue that learning Kannada is a gesture of respect towards the state and its culture, while others believe the need is less pressing given the prevalence of English in business and social contexts across Bengaluru.

I agree with this sentiment. If you make Bengaluru your home, you should learn Kannada and your kids should learn Kannada.Not doing so after living many years in Bengaluru is disrespectful.I often request our employees in Chennai coming from other states to make an effort to https://t.co/1cIQ47FMjnSridhar Vembu (@svembu) November 15, 2024

“Learning the local language is useful in many ways and should at least make an attempt at it rather than looking for reasons. It’s more fun learning new languages,” one user commented. However, others questioned whether the expectation is realistic, especially when considering how Indian metros function in largely multilingual settings.

One user pointed out the comparison to Mumbai, where decades-long Kannada residents rarely speak Marathi, raising the question of whether it’s feasible to expect fluency among non-natives within the same country.

For some, Bengaluru’s multilingual culture renders Kannada less of a necessity. With app-based services and English as the lingua franca in tech, one commenter noted, “Auto/cabs are on apps now, even without that, basic instructions are language independent.”

The debate shines a light on India’s complex language dynamics, where calls to learn local languages are often at odds with the country’s diverse linguistic identity and fast-paced metropolitan life.