Actor Kamal Haasan sparked controversy with his recent remarks at a film promotion event in Chennai, claiming that 'Tamil gave birth to Kannada'.
The BJP demands an apology from him, accusing Kamal Haasan of 'disrespecting' Kannada in his effort to glorify his own mother tongue.
What Did Kamal Haasan Say?
Recently, Kamal Haasan made these remarks at the audio launch of his film 'Thug Life' in Chennai.
He was reacting to actor Kamal Haasan바카라s observation that 바카라Tamil gave birth to Kannada바카라.
While addressing the audience, Kamal Haasan started his speech with the phrase 'Uyire Urave Tamizhe', which translates to 'my life and my family are the Tamil language', IT reported.
"Actor Shivarajkumar is my family living in another state. That's why he is here. That's why when I started my speech, I said, 바카라My life and my family is Tamil.바카라 Your language (Kannada) was born out of Tamil. So you are included in that line," he further added.
Kamal Haasan's comments sparked outrage in Karnataka, with pro-Kannada organisations like Kannada Rakshana Vedike condemning his remarks and threatening severe consequences if he continued to make similar statements.
What Did The BJP Demand?
Karnataka BJP President B Y Vijayendra on Tuesday accused actor Kamal Haasan of "disrespecting" Kannada in his effort to glorify his own mother tongue.
The BJP leader also demanded that the actor issue an "unconditional apology to Kannadigas immediately".
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), he said, "Artists should have the culture of respecting every language. It is the height of arrogance that actor @ikamalhaasan, who has acted in many Indian languages, including Kannada, has insulted Kannada.바카라
He also said Kannada has been a prominent language in many parts of the world, including India, for centuries.
"Kamal Haasan, who supposedly brings harmony to South India, has been continuously insulting Hinduism and hurting religious sentiments for the past few years. Now, he has insulted Kannada by hurting the self-respect of 6.5 crore Kannadigas. Kamal Haasan should immediately apologise unconditionally to Kannadigas," wrote the BJP chief.
Vijayendra also said Haasan is not a historian to tell with authority which language gave birth to which language.
"Kannada language, which has a history of more than two and a half thousand years, symbolises prosperity and represents harmony on the map of India. Let us remind Kamal Haasan that Kannadigas are not language haters, but they never sacrifice self-respect when it comes to their land, language, people, water, and ideas," he said.
