With hundreds of dialects and 22 officially recognized languages, India is a linguistically diverse nation. The linguistic landscape of India is deeply intertwined with regional identities, cultural heritage, and political power dynamics. Because of this, language politics in India are intricate and multidimensional issues with a big impact on people’s everyday lives.
Language is an essential indicator of pride and regional identity. States like Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and West Bengal have strong linguistic identities tied to their mother tongues. Naturally, this pride frequently affects political allegiance, educational policy, and cultural norms.
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Unfortunately, many times, this language politics has an impact on societal cohesiveness and can occasionally cause strife. Something similar recently happened when an Uber driver blasted at a passenger in Bengaluru for asking him to turn on the AC. For this, the driver said he didn’t know the passenger’s mother tongue and could only speak Kannada. The video of the incident went viral on social media, with people giving different opinions on it.
Uber driver loses his cool over passenger’s requirement for AC
It’s becoming intolerable to drive without air conditioning as the nation continues to be crippled by the intense heat. At this temperature, air-conditioned cars are necessary. However, there are some cab drivers in Bengaluru who are currently refusing to switch on the AC.
One X user became so frustrated with the circumstances that he decided to post his story on a microblogging platform. In his post, he detailed his confrontation with an Uber driver in Bengaluru.
The passenger can be seen on camera explaining that everything was well until he asked the driver to switch on the air conditioning. When the driver got angry, he stopped speaking in Hindi and started speaking Kannada. While sharing the video on X, which was formerly Twitter, the passenger said,
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“Since everyone is forming an opinion let me share the context here- 16sec video is 1st followed by the other video. I denied to sit in his friend’s Indica as it didn’t have AC and was filthy. Then I sat in his car n he talked to me in Hindi only.”
He added,
“But d moment I asked him to Turn on the AC he got charged up. Listen to him responding in Hindi AC nahi hai. It’s not abt language here it’s about arrogant n irresponsible person using Kannada language as smokescreen to continue scamming gullible people who travel to BLR for work.”
Here’s the Full Clip of kalesh b/w Cab driver and A guy over not Turning on AC in Karnataka pic.twitter.com/mxwO2njy7g
— Ghar Ke Kalesh (@gharkekalesh) May 20, 2024
But d moment I asked him to Turn on the AC he got charged up. Listen to him responding in Hindi AC nahi hai. It’s not abt language here it’s about arrogant n irresponsible person using Kannada language as smokescreen to continue scamming gullible people who travel to BLR for work
— Dr. Atharv Dawar 🇮🇳 (@atharvdawar) May 20, 2024
In addition, he shared a picture of the taxi’s license plate and said he had reported the driver to Uber Support. The video has received hundreds of likes and over 400K views on social media, sparking a lot of conversation.
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How social media reacted to the incident?
Social media users have expressed a range of perspectives. Some have called the driver’s actions “horribly wrong,” while others have recounted similar incidents they have had in the state.
I also face same problem but not in cab but in hospital he ask me why you came karnataka if you don’t know the Kannada it happened in Kalaburagi city Karnataka
— shaikh shahrukh (@these7en1) May 20, 2024
Couple of such drivers I met in NCR & Bangalore,was taught a nice lesson from me. Those drivers will never forget me. It was during my college days
— Prasenjit Singh (@Prasenj69091710) May 20, 2024
As a fellow kannadiga, this is horribly wrong. High chance that he is hiding under language chauvinism to make his car’s poor condition go unnoticed.
— Nikhil V K (@doc_nik_heal) May 21, 2024
The passenger seem to be nervous seeing the rowdy behaviour of the taxi driver. No point in talking so soberly sweetly with him in stead of taking alternative measure. That driver should be banned by all cab aggregators immediately.
— Odia Spirit (@Lsahu_L) May 20, 2024
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Why are drivers not turning on the ACs of cabs?
While the aforementioned instance may have been random and the driver might have done so for other reasons, Ola, Uber, and Rapido cab drivers have initiated the “No AC” campaign, which has left passengers uncomfortable and inconvenienced.
The Telangana Gig and Platform Union (TGPWU) launched a similar kind of campaign. It was done to raise awareness about how the high fuel and maintenance expenses prevent the taxi drivers affiliated with the Uber and Ola applications from turning on the air conditioning in their vehicles.
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