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Ravichandran Ashwin, whose recent retirement stunned the world of cricket and his fans, has said that Hindi is "not our national language but an official language" - a comment that could trigger a debate. Ashwin made the comment at the graduation ceremony of a private engineering college in Tamil Nadu, where the use of Hindi has always been a sensitive subject that has fuelled strong reactions. Addressing students, Ashwin asked if those attending the ceremony were willing to ask questions in Hindi if they weren't comfortable in English or Tamil.
"English students in the house - give me a yay," he urged, getting a loud cheer in reply. "Tamil" - at this, the students roared. "Okay, Hindi?" In response, the audience suddenly fell silent. "I thought I should say this. Hindi is not our national language; it is an official language," Ashwin went on to say, in Tamil.
Tamil Nadu: Former off spinner Ravichandran Ashwin says, "...I thought I'd say it all. It's (Hindi) not our national language; It's an official language. Okay, anyway"
(09/01/2025) pic.twitter.com/bR47icWZEU
- IANS (@ians_india) January 10, 2025
The comment could provoke fresh debate at a time several opposition parties, including Tamil Nadu's ruling DMK, have accused the Centre of trying to impose Hindi on states, especially in the South.
At the same event, Ashwin also touched upon the topic of Team India's captaincy. Here, the veteran off-spinner gave a diplomatic answer.
"When someone says I can't do it, I wake up to accomplish it, but if they say I can, I lose interest," Ashwin explained.
Ashwin also spoke about his background, having done engineering. Sharing learnings from his own journey, Ashwin asked students to never give up and remain persistent with their path, even in times of doubts.
"Had any engineering staff told me I couldn't become captain, I would have worked harder," he added, encouraging the students to stay focused and persistent when faced with doubts.
"If you are a student, you will never stop. If you aren't, learning will cease, and excellence will just be a word in your cupboard," he further said.