Petition to play Kannada songs in Bengaluru's pubs and clubs goes viral with over 80,000 signatories

An online petition asking for Kannada songs to be played in clubs has gone viral with over 80,000 people asking pubs in the metropolis to play Kannada songs alongside songs in other languages.

Alok Babu started the petition on change.org, stating that despite Kannada being the regional language, it does not get the importance as the language should. He stated that the clubs and pubs of Karnataka, especially Bengaluru play predominantly English or Hindi songs, and sometimes play Tamil or Telegu songs. However, no Kannada songs are played.

Dubbing the phenomenon as “disrespect” to the local language, he said that Kannada does not get prominence in the state.

Without specifying a genre, he has asked for clubs and pubs to play "at least 3-4 popular Kannada songs in whatever genre suits the ambience of the club every day as a gesture of respect to the region." He further added that this would also promote local talent and artists of the region.

In the petition, Babu said, “The time has come now, to raise voice for our mother tongue and to get the respectful righteous place it deserves!”

He also specifies that through this petition, he does not mean that only Kannada songs are played, but merely that a few of them can be added to the playlist of the establishment each night. The petition has thus far, more than 80,000 signatories, and has been addressed to the Chief Minister of Karnataka and Government of Karnataka.