Ravichandran Ashwin, regarded as India’s premier off spinner with an impressive 500 Test wickets, still cherishes the memories of playing cricket in the streets of West Mambalam. His book, “I Have the Streets: A Kutty Cricket Story,” published by Penguin Random House India, offers a nostalgic look at his early days before becoming a professional cricketer, focusing on the simple pleasures of playing street cricket in Chennai. Ashwin collaborated with Siddharth Monga, a cricket writer from ESPN Cricinfo, who helped transcribe Ashwin’s voice notes and shape the narrative. The book highlights Ashwin’s journey from playing gully cricket to striving for excellence in the sport.
In a conversation with Radhakrishnan, Content Head, CSK, Ashwin shared his thoughts on the challenges of not knowing how to converse in Hindi, offering an insightful perspective. “Not knowing Hindi can be proudly expressed as ‘Hindi Theriyadu Poda‘. Alternatively, it can be viewed as ‘If we don’t learn it, it could be difficult‘, a mindset that can lead to significant personal growth.”
Cricketing legend Ashwin opens up on the challenges of not knowing Hindi, and makes an important statement:
"Not knowing Hindi can be said (proudly) as 'Hindi Theriyaadhu Poda'.
Or it can also be said as 'If we don't learn it, it could be difficult', and this (mindset) will… pic.twitter.com/GtYYOrEku9— Tamil Labs 2.0 (@labstamil) June 26, 2024
He emphasized the importance of learning conversational Hindi for anyone aspiring to build a career beyond Tamil Nadu. Ashwin also seemingly urged native Hindi speakers to empathize with those learning the language and to foster inclusivity beyond linguistic barriers. He also stated that he wrote the book to drill down the point that learning the language would go a long way to earn acceptance from others and also be a part/contribute to conversations.
The DMK and its supporters have been trying very hard to keep Hindi at bay with campaigns like ‘Hindi Theriyadu Poda’ and derogating Indians from the North as “vadakkans“, “panipuri sellers” etc.
It is noteworthy that DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran also said that “Hindi speakers clean toilets.” Former DMK MP Senthilkumar referred to Hindi heartland states as “gaumutra” states.
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