Kolkata’s National Library Sparks Hilarious Language War on X
A representative image of language war on social media! (Image credit TRH)
From “Learn Bengali or Leave” to “Freedom to Speak Any Language,” a fiery debate over language etiquette at Kolkata’s National Library exposes India’s eternal love-hate relationship with words.
By TRH News Desk
Kolkata, October 6, 2025 — If you thought India’s Twitter debates were reserved for cricket scores and election drama, think again. Kolkata’s National Library has just proven that even a quiet, bookish institution can become the epicentre of a full-blown linguistic smackdown.
It all began with Riya, an independent researcher, who complained that the library staff were “absolutely disgusting,” insisting on Hindi over Bengali, and that security personnel outnumbered readers. A normal night at a library? Apparently not in Kolkata.
DJ Bulbul added fuel: the library had “completely gone out of hand,” he tweeted, calling it “a sanctuary of RSS” staffed by monolingual zealots. Enter Sonu Yadav, who defended the universal right to speak any language, even if no one else understands it: “Why is it necessary to learn Bengali to survive in West Bengal?”
And then came Sujan Dutta, poetically summing up the entire debate: “If I were living in Madurai, I’d learn Tamil. In Tehran, I’d learn Persian. Stop being a glot like another four-letter word, and the world would be better.”
Translation: mind your polyglot manners, or Twitter will.
StriderL reminded everyone of the librarians’ true duty: “You should know Bengali to appreciate Bengali literature.” Meanwhile, Sharbatanu Chatterjee pointed out that civil servants in West Bengal don’t need Bengali — proving once again that bureaucracy is India’s great equaliser.
And finally, Sidhartha Ghosh summed it up bluntly: “Disgusting! Arbitrary linguistic chauvinism should never be tolerated.”
At the end of the day, the debate wasn’t really Hindi versus Bengali. It was about identity, pride, and our compulsive need to correct strangers online. Kolkata may have its quirks, but it also produces writers who can turn a library’s security staff into headline fodder.
What This Debate Really Reveals
The viral row isn’t just about Hindi versus Bengali. It’s about identity, respect, and the everyday tensions in multilingual India. In a city known for its literary legacy, even a library can become a battleground for pride, politics, and keyboard warriors.
Kolkata takes its language seriously, but maybe, just maybe, the National Library needs fewer security personnel, more signage in multiple languages, and a reminder that reading is universal — words belong to everyone, not just one tongue.
In the end, the debate is a delightful mix of scholarship, sass, and social media theatre — and a reminder that in India, every argument eventually ends with a cup of tea and a lively discussion about who said what in which language.
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