Tamil superstar Kamal Haasan stirred a massive row after he said in a recent event that "Kannada was born out of Tamil language". As politicians and pro-Kannada activists lashed out at him and threatened to boycott him, the veteran actor stated that he will not apologise.
Haasan told PTI that his comment was "misinterpreted" and that he had said it "out of love". "I will not apologise for something I said out of love," he said, adding that a lot of historians have taught him language history.
"Politicians are not qualified on talking about language issues, and that includes me," he added.
Haasan did not just stop there but went on to say how Tamil Nadu has always been an inclusive state. "It is a very rare state where a Menon has been Chief Minister, a Reddy has been CM, and even a Kannadiga has served as CM."
Having said that, he mentioned how Karnataka and Kannadigas came to his aid in his time of need. "Karnataka stood by me when I faced problems in Chennai," he said.
What is the Kannada-Tamil row?
It all began after during the audio launch of his upcoming film, Thug Life, Haasan said, "My life and my family is Tamil language. 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 ‘my life and my family is Tamil’. Your language (Kannada) was born out of Tamil. So you are included in that line."
This did not sit well with Kannadigas, who called his statement an insult to their culture.
Protests erupted in several parts of Karnataka and pro-Kannada activists were seen tearing down posters of Haasan's Thug Life in Bengaluru. They demanded an unconditional apology for his statement and even threatened to blacken his face and boycott him completely in the state.
