Rabble Rousing Random Ramblings: More Kannada chauvinism

July 19, 2006

More Kannada chauvinism

Apparently the recently released Tamil movie Imsai Arasan 23am Pulikesi (Search for it: Google & Yahoo!) greatly affects the sentiments of Kannadigas.

That's why a bunch of Kannada ~~activists~~ chauvinists, wielding swords (or at any rate, they looked like swords), have protested the screening of the movie. They were unhappy with the title, which translates (approximately) to "Royal pain in the a@se, Pulikesi the 23^rd". Their contention is that the title demeans Pulikesi, who ruled over what constitutes modern day Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Hence they want the screening of the movie in Karnataka to be banned.

Haven't these jokers heard of satire, for that is exactly what the movie is meant to be? So far, the government hasn't stepped in. But I'd not be surprised if the movie ban was supported by the government. After all, Kannada pride plays a huge role in politics here, especially since son-of-the-soil Deve Gowda's son is the Chief Minister. Given the history of militant linguistic & religious organizations acting as super-censors and governments too willing to accede to their demands, I'm fairly sure this movie won't be seen in movie theatres in Karnataka.

Language chauvinism in Karnataka is nothing new. In fact, I've blogged about it a few times. In 2004, film producers & distributors sought a two month moratorium on the screening of new Tamil movies after their release. The government stepped in and made it a three week delayed screening process, which was ridiculous anyway.

Last year, on a visit to Hyderabad, I compared signs on buses, shops etc. there with those in Bangalore.

Last week, I noticed several boards along Old Madras Road which had been blackened out with some writing in Kannada. The only thing common to all those boards was that they had been written completely in English, without any Kannada on them.

Mind you, these so-called Kannada language protectors would in all possibility be sending their daughters & sons to English medium schools, possibly not even in Karnataka.

Labels: chauvinism, kannada, karnataka, movies

Rambled @ 1:06 PM

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26 comment(s)

Hey Jagdish,

not sure if this is a personal blogging area.....and if i invaded that space...I do read ur blogs regularly....
I totally agree with you on Chauvinism to a language....but let me assure you it prevails throughout the country...I am a tamilian brought up in karnataka, and I used to see this chauvinism as u call it all the time whenever i used to got to tamil nadu on vacation...Now i'm out of the country and what do I see in this foreign nation....again...deep rooted chauvinism to the universal language English....
but i wouldnt be totally surprised if the karnataka govt bans the screening of the movie...
I dont know if you read an article in rediff somedays back abt Anniyan remade in Hindi and the critic Mr.Raja Sen had many a bad things to say about the south indian languages and culture...so its not only chauvinism per se but also a distinct barrier between the south and north

By Anonymous (Jul 19, 2006, 7:54:00 PM)

bindu: I've stayed in Madras practically my entire life. I agree language chauvinism exists everywhere. But perhaps as a result of Bangalore being far more cosmopolitan than Madras, there's a greater chance of linguistic feelings cropping up. Mind you, TN's anti-Hindi agitation still rumbles on. But I suspect that since the Tamil film industry is a much bigger entity than it's Kannada counterpart and because Kannada movies are far more unlikely to be seen in TN than Tamil movies in Karnataka, obviously there's a lot more noise generated in the context of non-Kannada movies being screened here. I've always wondered why Karnataka & Tamil Nadu keep snapping at each other - Kaveri, movies, Veerappan, etc. etc.

By Jagadish (Jul 20, 2006, 12:00:00 AM)

Everytime I think its a phase and it has passed, some or the form of strange regional jingoism crops up!And its everywhere..for the guy in Delhi, anything south of MP is "Madras".. the auto-wallah in Chennai hikes up the price by 50 bucks the sec you talk to him in Hindi and the guys in Bangalore didn't want English movies screened in the theatres!! Where and when will it all end?I mean sure take pride in your culture, language, art forms, whtever else gets you going but not to the point of being just plain ludicrous!Somehow we can't distiguish the line between healthy passion and spooky fanaticism!And politicians jump into the mix to play to this strange demographic!To those people all I have to say is, "Sheesh, pleeease, Get A Life!!"
Sorry for the rant...it just made me mad! :-)

By P (Jul 20, 2006, 11:40:00 AM)

Yup I would say the same thing.....Please get a life!! I have personally know people like that who just cant distinguish between a healthy passion for a culture, language etc and fanaticism. I have come accross heated debates on this subject....its just a silver lining for these politicians when the Aam Janta are like this.
But i do hope this changes over time ( guess something impossible to hope for :-).....I'm just wondering if people are so fanatic about a language then what about those who live in Kashmir/border of IndoPak wherein they are fighting for the land.....Phew its just too much for me right now....gotta go for work...will come back and blog more

By Anonymous (Jul 20, 2006, 7:00:00 PM)

I'm not denying that jingoism exists everywhere. I tend to think that this whole Kannada-Tamil jingoism is far more prevalent than others. Given that the two states have never really been part of a single entity even prior to 1947, unlike say Andhra & TN, I really do find these "wars" hilarious and irritating.

By Jagadish (Jul 22, 2006, 1:07:00 AM)

Mahesh: Veerapandiya Kattabomman was apparently Telugu (hiak! hiak!). I wouldn't care about it, personally. I can't speak for other Tamilians. I'd probably even enjoy the movie if it was good. That analogy you mention about 'three fingers pointing towards me' is very novel. If Kannada movies are struggling to be screened in theatres, it is because of the quality of the movies, surely. How many commercial Kannada movies are _not_ remakes of Tamil/Hindi/Telugu originals?

By Jagadish (Aug 16, 2006, 4:54:00 PM)

Ok forget about Veerapandya Kattabomman who acc. to you is a Telugu. Lets use some other name for our movie.

How about...

1) arivu ketta MG ramachandran
2) moorkha arasu kanchi talaivan

shivaji

By Anonymous (Sep 9, 2006, 12:31:00 AM)

Ok forget about Veerapandya Kattabomman who acc. to you is a Telugu. Lets use some other name for our movie.

How about...

1) arivu ketta MG ramachandran
2) moorkha arasu kanchi talaivan

shivaji

By Anonymous (Sep 9, 2006, 12:32:00 AM)

Hey. I have no qualms about either. Like I said earlier, I can't/don't speak for other Tamilians. The core issue is something you've not addressed. This chauvinism also arises from the crappy quality of today's Kannada movies. How many are _not_ remakes of Tamil/Telugu/Hindi movies?

By Jagadish (Sep 13, 2006, 3:11:00 PM)

Interesting Points and Discussion.

By Apun Ka Desh (Sep 29, 2006, 6:37:00 PM)

i am willing to sponsor a one way ticket on the shatabti to chennai. please leave our city at once.

By Anonymous (Oct 25, 2006, 1:15:00 AM)

anonymous: If my reaction to someone pointing out flaws with "my" city is to ask them to leave, I'd be very worried.

By Jagadish (Oct 25, 2006, 7:44:00 PM)

Hey Man,

This is Mahesh here again.
Do you think every kannada movie is a remake of Tamil/Telugu etc. Come on you can't get your stomach filled by watching movies. We kannadigas have far more than just movies. If movies are life then why so many tamilians are pouring into Karnataka like never before.If you feel everything Tamil is great and godly then i suggest you stay there and you should be happy.
I would like to name few kannada movies which are originals and great hits and are being remade in Telugu and Tamil
1.Jogi
2.Apthamithra (which was remade into chandramukhi) >> just compare the two..
3.Nenapirali( 5 film fare awards)
4.Amurthadaare
5.Datta
6.Mata
and many more.......
How many of your blockbuster movies aren't remakes from Telugu and malayalam. Consider all mahesh babu's movies being remade into Vijay's movies.
We kannadigas are not movie fanatics like you people who burn theatre screens if you hear rash dialogues against ur superstar on screen and make hits of all the movies churned out of Tamil filmdom.
We kannadigas watch only quality movies out of all the kannada movies. Except Anniyan there weren't many hits in Tamil in 2005. Also Ghazini was inspired from an English movie...do you know that...

By Anonymous (Nov 6, 2006, 12:19:00 PM)

Mahesh: I didn't say that _every_ Kannada movie is a remake. Please read my post/comments properly. True, movies aren't life. But this post is about chauvinism shown in the context of movies. I feel sorry for you, and others, who are so patriotic about Bangalore that they say "If you want to complain about something, don't bother to come here".

Your list of movies is impressive. But let me point out that Apta Mitra was in fact a remake of Manichitrathazhu (Malayalam). As for Tamil movies being remakes from other languages, that may be the case. But the proportion is far less compared to Kannada. The number of hits are also far more. I do hope to learn Kannada one day to appreciate the good movies which're made here. But at this point in time, purely on the basis of reading/hearing what's happening around me, the news doesn't sound good for Sandalwood.

The Tamil movie industry isn't in the doldrums. Reading the news over the last few days, it seems like the Kannada movie industry sure is.

Kannada Producers deadlock - http://entertainment.oneindia.in/movies/regional/kannada/top-stories/kannada-producers-deadlock-061006.html
Move to release other language films dubbed into Kannada opposed - http://www.hindu.com/2006/11/04/stories/2006110404030400.htm
Waiting for Ambareesh...but can he get film industry to patch up? - http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/nov62006/state018172006116.asp
Speak unitedly, film industry told - http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/28/stories/2006102801010500.htm
Can Darshan save Kannada cinema? - http://specials.rediff.com/movies/2006/oct/13sld1.htm

Notice that Thangigaagi is in fact a remake of Tirupaachi (Vijay, Trisha etc.)

I rest my case.

By Jagadish (Nov 7, 2006, 12:53:00 AM)

That's right, Om.

But we're not talking of 'official' or 'national' languages here. Kannada may be the official language of Karnataka, just as Tamil is that of TN while Maharashtra uses Marathi, Gujarat uses Gujarati, Orissa uses Oriya while Punjab uses Punjabi.

Does that give the state, or indeed the "self-styled" protectors of the language (typically the same), the power to implement a militant brand of language chauvinism? I think/hope not!

By Jagadish (Jan 2, 2007, 11:45:00 PM)

hi just read that u have written so i thought i will reply ,are you staying in bangalooru i think u are ,have you gone to tamil nadu ,when i went it was diffcult to know which bust to catch cos all was written in the great language tamil.even the route # they are not chauvinist but people how say that the movie name is not appropriate are chauvinist and ya that movie should not be relesed in karnataka,how many tamil speaking people are settled in begalooru do you know u want kavery here also and want that for tamilnadu also.u people want water ,food .job and all the basic needs but u do not want to learn kannada are u dont want to give respect for kannadigas cos we are chauvinist.if you do not like karnataka some body as told that they willl book a oneway ticket in shathdi i will offer u a frist class airticket .
learn to respect the language and culture where you are in by doing that u can go a long way

By Unknown (May 29, 2007, 2:10:00 AM)

Your blog's colour scheme needs an upgrade! Please try a scheme that offers you contrasting foreground and background colours.

By Ellelliyu (Aug 9, 2007, 9:21:00 PM)

Hi mahesh,
You said Apthamithra is original ?? Even Tamilians know that its a remake of old malayalam classic "manichithrathazhu" also its now being remade as Bool Bulaiyya in Hindi..

By Vinod Bhasi (Oct 27, 2007, 3:23:00 AM)

DANDAM DASHAGUNAM...it'z not about the quality of kannada films..people here lack of marketing skills or may be too lazy when compare to other industries...otherwise there is no difference in the quality of movies made in all languages...all are same...tamil/telugu is full of hypes and marketing...forget about hindi..it'z just glamour industry...

just refer this link once...you will come to know abt some real facts..

http://www.totalkannada.com/Anatomy%20of%20Kannada%20Films.asp

By Anonymous (Jan 21, 2009, 10:03:00 AM)

I often wondered why they bother to make Kannada movie.

By Anonymous (Feb 18, 2010, 3:29:00 PM)

I have seen many boards in Hindi blackened in TN along the National Highways, what is this then?

By Anonymous (Nov 23, 2013, 11:35:00 AM)

Hi Jagadish,
Not sure why you are so much worried about Kannada chauvinism in Karnataka, alas it is kannada in it's own state Karnataka.It's not as if Kannadigas are fighting for hurting their sentiments in Tamilnadu. If you so speak of chauvinism, then why is it that Hindi is not allowed to be learnt as a language in TN. Atleast I know this because lot of tamilians don't know to read/write hindi. This while AP and Karnataka goverments and the people of the state are not against hindi and hindi and North Indians both are thriving and doing good business in AP and Karnataka. So while there may be chauvinism(whatever you call..your so called definiition but that's not how i look at it being a kannadiga) in a few pockets of Bangalore, I can say the whole of TN is chauvinistic in not allowing Hindi language to be taught in TN while whole of the nation is learning Hindi. Also, give me a break life is not all about watching/making quality movies. Movies don't feed you or provide you food,shelther and clothing. You have blown a very small incident out of proportion just to create more hatred between Kannadigas and Tamilians. I being a Kannadiga have watched equal no of Tamil and Kannada movies and I know very well where the Tamil movies stand. Kannidigas like malayalis don't like star worship or too much fights in their movies and for us movie is not the bread and butter and neither are we movie crazy like you do...so we give shit to movies and that's why Rajani ran away from Bangalore and thriving in TN. That doesn't mean you can show anything on screen that too in a theatre in Karnataka and we will allow you. It simply hurts our sentiments when a Kannadiga ruler/freedom fighter is shown in bad light and we oppose it. That's it. You can do anything in the name of satire..please do anything unholy and abusive in the name of satire but please use your sisters and mothers for that and not make use of neighbouring state's culture and icons for that.

By Mahesh (Mar 3, 2015, 1:25:00 PM)

Lot of Kannadigas/Bangaloreans speak in Tamil to a Tamil speaking person but I have been to Chennai and not even one person spoke to us in Kannada inspite of knowing we are from Bangalore.That's because we are more welcoming and friendly when compared with people from TN.How disgusting it is to see Tamils conversing in Tamil and saying "Don't know Kannada" and going on with their chores in Bangalore just with their own language Tamil and you still call Kannadigas Chauvinists...try doing this same in TN/Chennai and do you think it will work....can i lead a life of normalcy with just kannada in Chennai..highly impossible while the reverse case is possible and you can see that not just in Bangalore..but in Shimoga,Bhadravathi,Chikkmagalur...all these districts of Karnataka you can see tamils being loudmouthed and thrusting their language, culture,loudness and arrogance on others and that's what makes everyone hate tamilians. Their loudmouthness and arrogance and their belief that tamil is the all and end all.

By Mahesh (Mar 3, 2015, 1:34:00 PM)

there was a king called pulikesi in chola dynasty too...stop fighting idiots...

By Unknown (May 16, 2015, 10:44:00 PM)

what?? tamil film industry people opposed arjun sarja acting in Sangolli Rayanna movie?
this is like telling floods in america because i forget to close my tap in india..
first of all why tamil industry should be bothered about Sangolli Rayanna??? why arjuna sarja obeyed them if he is real kannadiga?
got any brains?? please use it.... i guess it reaching its expiry date...

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By Astrologer Pandit Yoginath (Jun 21, 2021, 8:17:00 PM)

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