Quite recently, hero Nani’s comments about why his film Ante Sundariniki was not dubbed into Kannada went viral, and many Kannadigas complained and slammed the actor for the same. Every now and then this debate about content from other languages not being dubbed into Kannada shows up. And once again it has come in the form of Mahesh Babu’s upcoming Telugu film Sarkaru Vaari Paata and Adivi Sesh’s Major.
No Kannada dubbed films
Netizens are yet again furious over the fact that Mahesh Babu’s upcoming Telugu film Sarkaru Vaari Paata, which is releasing in theatres on May 12, and Adivi Sesh’s Major, releasing on May 27 in Telugu and Hindi, are not being dubbed in Kannada.
Mahesh Babu, however, did not draw as much anger as Adivi Sesh, as Sarkaru Vaari Paata is not being dubbed in any other language and is being released as a plainly Telugu film. Nevertheless, netizens do point out that every time a Mahesh Babu film was dubbed for Kannada television, it has got the highest TRP ratings. Netizens argue that if his films are dubbed in Kannada for theatrical release, they will get good business in Karnataka.
Meanwhile, Major is facing criticism given that Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, on whose life the film is based was a Malayali who lived in Bengaluru.
It is not only Telugu films that netizens are bashing. A recent big Hollywood release, Dr. Strange 2, for example, has been released with Kannada versions, but in a city like Bengaluru, it got only two shows, while the Telugu and Tamil versions got 12 shows each.
Language barrier
A Twitter user speaking on the issue wrote, “Kannada dubbed versions attract more audiences, especially in rural areas. The only thing holding them back from watching big-ticket releases from other industries is the language barrier.”
#nokannadanobusiness why it was not dubbed in kannada,, #stopteluguimposition in karnataka
— Ravi Rudramuniswamy (@RRudramuniswamy) May 10, 2022
ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಇರದೇ ಇರುವುದರಿಂದ ನಾನು ನೋಡುವುದಿಲ್ಲ.#stopteluguimposition
Don't dump telugu movie in Karnataka
We want in Kannada.@urstrulyMahesh ಅವರೆ KGF2 ಹೇಗೆ 1000+ Cr.
ಬಿಸಿನೆಸ್ ಮಾಡಿತು ಡಬ್ಬಿಂಗ್ಗಿಂದ ಅಲ್ವ ಹಾಗೆ ನಿಮ್ಮ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ಕನ್ನಡವೂ ಸೇರಿದಂತೆ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ಬಾಶೆಗಳಿಗೂ ಡಬ್ ಮಾಡಿ.— ರೇವಣ್ಣ. ಎಚ್.ಸಿ. (@HcRevanna) May 10, 2022
#BangaloreKannadigas don't watch #Telugu movies in karnataka if they don't dub it in #kannada #stopteluguimposition
— Ravi Rudramuniswamy (@RRudramuniswamy) May 10, 2022
It is not the first time Kannadigas were angry about Telugu films not being dubbed in Kannada. Previously they have shown their concerns regarding Telugu films doing well in Karnataka and even doing better than Kannada films in cities like Bengaluru. Thanks to KGF Chapter 2, previously the highest-grossing film in Karnataka was Baahubali 2.
Lots of Kannada cinema lovers claim that the Kannada film industry has been suffering huge losses for a long time due to Telugu and Tamil dubbed movies being released in the state. So their outrage is justified when less number of films dubbed in Kannada are brought to Karnataka.
