In that part of India, where wheat sells more than rice, coffee is only for romancing couples, where the dudes look fairer than dough there runs a popular theory of every South Indian being a Madrasi.He inevitably spoke “Kannad”(Kannada,it is!) at home. Tamil to most folks was either Rajnikanth or Jayalilatha! When i was 14, a guy had got admitted in my school.He was from Bangalore. Inevitably, I was forced to talk to him by our well wishers who thought i could help him with the language. And poor fellow, he thought I knew kannada! All that my ears could hear was the extended sound on a few vowels, especially the beautiful ooos added to even the Anglo words. And boy, I didnt decipher a single word! And there grew the urge to learn the language which is my mother tongue's cousin!
What inspired me to write this piece, is to see a few people new to Bangalore struggling with little Kannada picked up somewhere, even fewer who really attempt learning it and the majority of whom are unaware of this great language. Four years ago, when I stepped into a nondescript location called Mathikere, there was hardly anything to inspire me to learn Kannada! I had to explain something specific to a barber and seeing my struggle, the barber offered me options.”Which language boss? Telugu na? Tamilaa? Malayalama? Hindi kya??”! Every auto driver knew Tamil. Every bus conductor understood English. It took me a week to actually realise there were kannadigas in my class! Part of why people Kannada does not follow in a Bangaloreans blood is because of its perception of being E-City! Bangalore is much more than that! Walk through the courteous Jayanagar area, the Pethe areas,drink coffee at MTR. All this would be incomplete without learning Kannada.
What marks Kannada and Kannadigas out from others is the way they accomodate outsiders nto the mainstream society and hence, its no wonder to see the Marwaris selling their wares, the Tamilian holding Tamil Sangams and many a Bihari selling pawns! And so often than not, a metre given is easily converted into a mile! The language, washed by the purest of rivers Kaveri, draped by the Dravidian languages, bejewelled by the pristine Sanskrit, as aromatic as the Coorgi coffee is as meliflous as the beautiful concotion of Carnatic music and Hindustani music playing Jugalbandi with each other.
Open your ears to Kannada and be proud of being a Bangalorean!
