Overview

• Haasan said during the May 24 ‘Thug Life’ audio launch in Chennai that Kannada was born out of Tamil while addressing actor Shivarajkumar.
• Karnataka BJP president B Y Vijayendra and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah condemned the comment as historically baseless and demanded an unconditional apology.
• Haasan defended his words as spoken “out of love” and said he would not apologize, arguing that politicians lack the expertise to discuss language history.
• On May 28, Karnataka Rakshana Vedike filed a formal complaint at RM Nagar Police Station in Bengaluru, calling the remark unlawful and harmful to regional harmony.
• Protesters have threatened to boycott or ban ‘Thug Life’ in Karnataka ahead of its June 5 release, underscoring deep concerns over language identity.