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Updated October 26th, 2021 at 14:29 IST

'Boycott KFC' trends on Twitter over language row; Fast-food giant responds to accusation

A video circulating on the microblogging site Twitter shows a KFC staff refusing to play a Kannada song, arguing that Hindi is the country's national language.

Reported by: Rohit Ranjan
KFC
Image: Unsplash/ Representative | Image:self
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KFC, the fast-food behemoth, has recently been embroiled in controversy. A video circulating on the microblogging site Twitter shows a KFC staff refusing to play a Kannada song, arguing that Hindi is the country's national language. Karnataka is the state where the video was shot. When the video was published on Twitter, it drew a lot of attention from many Karnataka residents, who chastised the KFC employee.

The woman, who requested the Kannada song also filmed the video and shared it on Twitter, with the caption, "Kannada songs in KFCs in Karnataka are not @KFC_India  As a rule!" The 2-minute 20-second video features the woman arguing with the employees who claim that Hindi is the national language of India. At first, a man is seen talking to the woman, then a woman employee comes and jumps into the argument. Soon a higher authority comes to see the situation. The woman criticised KFC's management in the video.

The video was shared two days ago on October 23 and since then it has gone viral, earning thousands of views and likes with over a hundred retweets. It also invited a huge number of comments from people who were outraged by KFC.

KFC's official statement on the incident states that the video in question is dated and is being re-circulated.

"This video is dated and is now being re-circulated. KFC India has the highest respect for cultural values of all communities. As a brand with presence across the country, it is our endeavour to ensure our consumers have the same KFC experience whenever and wherever they visit us, and hence at present we have a common playlist that is licensed and purchased centrally and played across restaurants nationwide." – KFC India Spokesperson

Netizens bash KFC

One Twitter user wrote, "KFC India. This is ridiculous. When you want to do business in India then follow the local rules." Another commented, "All we asking is Respect all Languages pls... Full Support from Tamil Nadu for sure. Just asking to follow my language if you do business in respective states of my great India." The third comment read, "KFC. You put up the shop to sell …that's your business. you are not here to promote the language..culture. Do your business…or else wind up. Period."

Many started using the hashtag #BoycotKFC. One user wrote, "The rule and very important aspect of any business are to respect the local culture. If you fail to do that you won’t survive anywhere. This is our place and our language is our first priority. Better learn to respect that.

Similar instance with Zomato

Last week, a similar instance happened with Zomato when a customer from Tamil Nadu said he was denied a refund for a missing item in his order because he didn't speak Hindi. Soon after, there was a major outcry on Twitter, with many people accusing the meal delivery app of imposing Hindi on its users.

(Image: Unsplash/ Representative)

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Published October 25th, 2021 at 22:58 IST

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