The Karnataka high court has strongly criticised actor and filmmaker Kamal Haasan for his recent remark suggesting that “Kannada was born out of Tamil”, and observed that a “single apology could have resolved the situation.”
As reported by PTI, Justice M Nagaprasanna, who presided over the hearing, said that the statement had hurt the sentiments of the people of Karnataka and questioned Haasan’s refusal to offer an apology.
“Language is an emotional and cultural identity of a people,” and stressed that no individual has the right to make comments that undermine the pride of an entire linguistic community, the court observed.
Justice Nagaprasanna remarked, “Are you a historian or a linguist to make such a statement? No language is born out of another. A single apology could have resolved the situation.”
The remark, reportedly made by Haasan at a promotional event in Chennai for his upcoming Tamil film Thug Life, sparked a backlash in Karnataka, prompting the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) to announce that the film would not be screened in the state unless Haasan apologised.
In response, Raajkamal Films International—the production company co-founded by Haasan—filed a plea before the High Court seeking protection for the film’s release.
