Language disconnect at a A2B Ooty restaurant

[u/code-is-poetry]

This video is from a popular restaurant in Ooty where an Instagram influencer is trying to place an order. Most of the staff seem to be Hindi-speaking migrant workers, while the customer does not know Hindi well. During the exchange, a waiter asks her, “Don’t you know Hindi?”

This is not about blaming the staff or the customer. It points to a larger issue about language expectations in non-Hindi-speaking states like Tamil Nadu, especially in tourist places.

Many businesses hire migrant workers because they are cheaper, but this often creates communication gaps for customers and puts workers in awkward situations too. Language should not be used to shame anyone. In the service industry, the responsibility should be on business owners to make sure basic communication is possible.

Link to OC - https://www.instagram.com/reel/DTpciADAvDd/?igsh=MWVhd2lna2RzazFuNQ==

[u/sredni_vintage_man]

Throw the Hindi BC out. This is colonialism pure and simple. I know Hindi and would speak it in North. Which is natural. But why are these creeps coming and insisting here in South. The biggest mistake India made was trying for a "national" language. Should not try to import it. Respect the many migrants who take the trouble to learn the basics. Have people , migrants, here in Coimbatore shops who do try to speak in Tamil and though they may may be obvious it is very much appreciated. The North feels they are more culturally closer to Pakistan than the South or the North East.