Preeja Prasad By

Express News Service

BENGALURU: Sridevi J N just moved to Bengaluru for work and her daughter studying in Class 6 has taken Kannada as her second language while Hindi is her first. “Taking Kannada as the first language would mean she has to learn the sixth grade-level syllabus. Her second language is comparatively easier,” she said. “I realised language plays a huge role in connecting with people here so I too attend tuitions along with my daughter,” added Sridevi, who has been attending classes for the past one month in Vasanth Nagar.

With a large population of migrants entering Bengaluru, language barrier poses a problem. Not only that, since Kannada was made compulsory last year for all schools, mastering the language has been a challenge not only for migrant students but for their parents as well. What’s interesting is that, apart from students, parents are also joining in to learn the mandatory language. In such troubled times, social media comes to the rescue of migrants who try hard to learn the regional language and be a part of the Kannadiga community.

Kannada Gottilla, a WhatsApp platform, claims that beginners can master the basics in 25 days. The fee is Rs 249 per month. “With voice recordings and notes, one can learn how to get the pronunciation and accent right too,” said Anup Maiya, an IT professional who started this concept five years ago. Other platforms include Kannada Baruthe, a mobile app with more than 50,000 downloads since its inception in 2013. The platform was started by seven IT professionals. IndLangs, another online platform, which teaches the language through a one-month Skype session, has also been popular. It launched an 85-page guidebook with basic words on Rajyotsava Day last year.

Kannada Gottilla is now a team of 10 other IT professionals along with Maiya, who keep aside one hour every morning and send their daily lessons by 10am. “Every month, we have around 200 people signing up for the programme,” Maiya said. People who have taken up the programme include professionals, people preparing for exams and even those who are getting married to Kannadigas.

The initiative may include other regional languages such as Tulu, Marathi and Tamil. With learning levels like KG 1, KG 2 and KG 3, even beginners can start using basic conversational phrases. Offline too, there has been a rising urge to learn Kannada. Lekshmi Venkat, a Kannada teacher, said more students are taking up classes. “Since last year, the basics of what I teach students are being picked up by parents. They are learning the language through notes given to their children,” she said.

M A Khan, principal and high school teacher, KK English School, Varthur, says they have had to conduct special classes for students. “Taking tuitions becomes a compulsion for these students and since some parents keep getting transferred from other regions, learning different languages is a hassle. We hope a new policy will be brought in where the child can learn any two languages,” he said.

In 2014, the central government also launched an app called Kelu, which has 12 major Indian languages, including Kannada.