Saturday, April 26, 2025

Bengaluru road rage and Kannada vs Hindi debate

In Episode 24 of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran, Pooja Prasanna, and Leena Reghunath discuss Bengaluru’s migrants vs Kannadigas issue and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar’s criticism aimed at the Supreme Court’s powers. Also part of the discussion are comedian and writer Nithin Kamath, lawyer Suhrith Parthasarathy, and TNM’s Anisha Sheth.

On the Bengaluru debate, Dhanya says, “For many Kannadigas, this isn’t just about language. It’s really about erasure. There is a fear among locals that their city, culture, and identity is being sidelined.”

Anisha adds, “It’s become an argument over a fight for economic resources — land, water, all of these things. And that’s acquired a kind of belligerence on all sides.”

Nithin observes, “On social media, anything related to Kannada, Karnataka, or Bengaluru has become a keyword of sorts. People lace Kannada sentiments into any issue, like with the Shiladitya Bose road rage incident. By the time the facts come out, the damage is already done.”

Pooja says, “Bengaluru is a welcoming city. We don’t care what the accent is, if the words are right, we’re just so happy that somebody is making an effort. But there is a language of disrespect that doesn’t need translation. When somebody makes everything about ‘you people’ versus ‘us people’, when you’re unwilling to even acknowledge the local culture, forget respecting it, that is where these fissures happen.”

As the conversation shifts to Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar’s remarks on the Supreme Court, Suhrith Parthasarathy says, “Our constitutional design is such that the judiciary, which comprises an unelected body of members and judges, will act as a check on not just executive excesses but also legislative excesses.”

On the Supreme Court’s verdict on the role of governors, Leena points out, “What the court has done is just take the vision of the constitution-makers and say, do your job for what you were appointed. Be a constitutional head, a sagacious counselor, pour oil over troubled waters. That is not what is playing out now.”

All this and more—tune in.

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Audio Timecodes

00:00:36- Support TNM

00:01:01- Introduction

00:02:16 -Pahalgam Terror Attack

00:11:43 -Bengaluru Debate

00:51:05- VP vs. Supreme Court

01:15:21 – Letters

01:21:58 – Recommendations

References

Recommendations

Nithin kamath

Anisha sheth

Suhrith Parthasarathy

Leena Reghunath

Pooja Prasanna

Dhanya Rajendran

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Produced by Bhuvan Malik, Edited by Jaseem Ali.