'Leave just as an experiment and see what happens': Netizens upset after Insta influencer says ‘Bengaluru would be empty if North Indians leave’

An Instagram influencer, Sugandh Sharma, has sparked controversy by saying that if all North Indians left Bengaluru, the city would be empty. In a reel filmed in Koramangala, she claimed that even paying guest accommodations (PGs) would be vacant without them.

The video went viral and caused a lot of outrage, with many people saying her comments were disrespectful to Bengaluru's culture and heritage.

As the post went viral, many people, including celebrities and everyday citizens, criticized her comments as divisive and disrespectful. Public figures like actor and rapper Chandan Shetty, actresses Chaithra Achar and Anupama Gowda, and Bigg Boss stars Rupesh Rajanna and Dhanraj also expressed their disapproval of Sharma's remarks.

Shetty called the video a publicity stunt, while Gowda emphasized the need to maintain harmony in Bengaluru’s diverse culture.

“If you can actually leave, just as an experiment, and see how Bangalore becomes empty, we are ready to live with that emptiness and dancers less pubs. We can live with it. Really♥️. Forget all other North Indians. You leave ma’am, enough for now!” Achar commented.

“If you think this is cool, nope it isn’t. You need Bengaluru more than anything else and you leaving Bengaluru doesn’t make any difference to our OORU and for a fact that we all you can’t leave bengaluru – If you know you know ,” commented Gowda.

In July, a woman shared her tough experience commuting in Bengaluru. She described how auto drivers would question her about being from the North, ask if she was learning Kannada, and request more money because she was newly married. She found these interactions with locals to be very unpleasant.

“What a harassment it was to commute in auto from flat to office and back. The audacity of local auto drivers to strike a conversation on why I was in Bangalore when I belonged to North, if I was learning Kannada, asking if I like anything apart from weather, asking for more money as I was newly married and pretending not to understand a word when I would talk in Hin/Eng,” she had shared.

In another incident, a Reddit user recounted a troubling experience during a cab ride in Bengaluru. He asked the driver to turn on the AC to avoid dust, but the driver responded in Kannada, questioning why he wanted the AC and suggesting he cancel the ride. The user politely asked to be dropped off, but this led to a tense situation.

The Reddit user said the driver got angry and suddenly turned on the AC. He then drove recklessly, with sudden brakes and quick accelerations. The user, who has vertigo, worried that the erratic driving would make him dizzy.