The use of language is a very sensitive issue in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. There have been discussions about the use of Hindi in the state and it is also a political issue. And no. ministers from Tamil Nadu refused to accept Hindi as their language and insisted on the use of Tamil in the state.
Former Indian offspinner Ravichandran Ashwin recently sparked a controversial debate over the use of language in the state. Ashwin called Hindi the official language and not the national language.
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Ravichandran Ashwin sparked a controversial debate on the language
Ravichandran Ashwin was speaking at a graduation ceremony at a private engineering college in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. During the ceremony, he asked no. of students who understand English. Furthermore, he also asked about Tamil or Hindi speaking students.
While he got warm applause for English, he got even louder applause for Tamil which was understandable as he was in Tamil Nadu. However, the cheers died down considerably when Ashwin asked for Hindi.
“English students in the house… give me a yura. Tamil? (loud cheers from the audience). Okay…Hindi (very little cheer),” Ashwin said at the ceremony.
After realizing that the audience was hardly cheering for the Hindi language at all, Ashwin sparked a debate by saying, “I thought I should say this. Hindi is not our national language; it is the official language.”
#Watch | தமிழிக்கு ஆதிர்ந்தை அர்க்கம்.. இந்திக்கு QUIET.. “இந்திக்க்கியு இல்லு இல்லு”.. நிர்க்கு பேட்டு ஆஷைவை!
Ashwin, the cricketer who played mass at the graduation ceremony held at a private engineering college in Chennai#Sunny news | #Chennai | #Ashwin | @ashwinravi99 pic.twitter.com/TeWPzWAExQ
— Sun News (@sunnewstamil) January 9, 2025
Is Hindi the national language of India?
Ashwin received another loud cheer from the crowd after he refused to call Hindi the national language. However, these statements caused a controversial discussion on social networks
It should be noted that the Constitution of India recognizes Hindi as an “official language”, but not as a national language. India does not have a specific national language due to the wide variety of languages spoken in different parts of the country.
Ravichandran Ashwin’s amazing numbers in Tests
Ravichandran Ashwin recently retired from international cricket during the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He officially announced his retirement after the third Test of the series played at the Gabba, Brisbane.
The 38-year-old veteran went on to become one of the legends of the game, playing more than 100 Tests in his prolific Test career. Ashwin has picked up 537 wickets in 106 Tests at an average of 24 with 37 hauls with five wickets.
Ravichandran Ashwin finished as India’s second most successful bowler in Tests after Anil Kumble. Apart from bowling, he was also a handy batsman. He scored 3503 runs at an average of 25.75 and scored 6 hundreds in his career.
Apart from Test cricket, Ashwinn also played fair no. white ball cricket. He finished with 156 wickets in 116 ODIs at an average of 33.20 and 72 wickets in 65 T20Is at an average of 23.22.
