India, April 21 -- A non-Kannadiga man who sparked outrage online after a video showed him demanding an auto driver "speak in Hindi" has issued an apology in Kannada, saying he respects the city that has given him a livelihood.

The video, which has gone viral across social media platforms, captured a heated exchange between the man and an auto driver in Bengaluru.

During the argument, the man is heard angrily telling the driver, "Speak in Hindi if you want to stay in Bengaluru," while his friends try to calm him down. The driver, visibly angry, responds, "You have come to Bengaluru, you speak in Kannada. I won't speak in Hindi."

The video has reignited the ongoing debate around regional language in Karnataka's capital. Many social medi...