Belagavi: Karnataka Rakshana Vedike protests against Kamal Haasan for his statement on Kannada language

BELAGAVI: After sparking controversy due to his statement claiming that the Kannada language originated from Tamil, actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan had to face outrage.

Protests were held near the INOX cinema hall in Karnataka’s Belagavi against Kamal Haasan. The protests were organised by Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, which expressed its anger and demanded his apology over the issue.

On Wednesday, Karantaka BJP president launched a scathing attack on actor Kamal Haasan for his alleged remarks claiming that “Kannada has its roots in Tamil,” labelling the statement as an insult to the Kannada language and the self-respect of 6.5 crore Kannadigas.

In a strongly worded post on X, BY Vijayendra demanded an unconditional apology from Haasan, accusing him of displaying arrogance and an ungrateful attitude towards the Kannada community, despite having acted in Kannada films and benefited from their generosity.”One should love one’s mother tongue, but showing disrespect in its name is uncultured behaviour. Especially artists should have a culture of respecting every language. It is the height of arrogance that an actor, Kamal Haasan, who has acted in many Indian languages, including Kannada, has insulted Kannada by including actor Shivarajkumar in the glorification of his Tamil language,” the BJP MLA from Shikaripura stated.

Meanwhile, DMK slammed BJP for stirring controversy over actor Kamal Haasan’s reported statement “Kannada is born out of Tamil,” accusing the party of creating trouble and dividing people by misrepresenting historical references as insults.

DMK spokesperson TKS Elangovan defended Haasan, arguing that his comment was likely a historical citation rather than a personal opinion, and emphasised that the focus should be on a language’s usage and impact rather than its origins.

“When the BJP enters into any issue, they will talk all nonsense… Kamal Haasan might have read and quoted some historical facts. It is not his finding. He might have taken his source from history, but this does not mean that he is insulting Kannadam,” the DMK spokesperson said.

“I can quote one thing… English is a language spoken all over the world, but the first English literature was published in the 13th century… When we say that English is a newborn language, it does not mean it is an insult to English… More than half of the population speaks, reads, and uses English… That is the credit for language; when it is born, that’s not the issue. How it is used is what matters. It is not Kamal Haasan’s view. He might have quoted from history… BJP’s role is to create trouble among people. They want to divide people, break people. BJP is not a party for the sake of the people… Nobody is against Kannada,” Elangovan added. (ANI)