Women comedians use colloquial south Indian lingo to hilarious effect on social media

When a video of a woman on social media has her using pukka local words that bring tons of childhood memories tumbling back - of say the neighbourhood old lady shouting abuses at notorious children, or of the owner of the corner kakka store who chides you when you bargain for an extra toffee for a price with a ‘puksatta?’ (you think things are for free?) remark, she just has all your attention.South Indian lingo has made many a star online, with social media influencers winning over hearts, entertaining viewers with their regular dose of fully local viral video clips.

Even the north loves south Indian lingo
“I had a show in Delhi recently and the largely Hindi-speaking audience knew exactly what I meant when I said ‘Adhiga Prasangi in Tamil'," chuckles Sumukhi Suresh. The popular stand-up comedian and actor has been hailed for her pan-Indian content, done mostly in English and Hindi, but also features a happy smattering of south Indian lingo, i.e.; her mother tongue Tamil. In Sumukhi's 'Don’t Tell Amma' (Don’t tell my mother) series for example -- which is largely in English, but have ample Tamil lingo -- the videos have been lapped up by even non-Tamil speaking audiences. Phrases like "Naa Paathe" (I saw what you did) that south-Indian mothers so often use, have been met with rip-roaring laughter. "I am a south Indian who was raised in Nagpur, but also lived in Chennai and Bengaluru, so mine is a khichdi of languages. So irrespective of the language of my video, when I use words like amma and paati (grandmother), they find an immediate connection across the nation because people identify with the feeling behind it," points out Sumukhi.

Celebs following ahoy!
The emotion behind a lingo is probably what made Hrithik Roshan also hit 'like' when Niharika NM made a video that had a popular south-Indian word jollu (drool) in it. The 23-year-old has steadily risen over the past year to internet fame with her largely south-Indian flavoured content, but has found favour even with Bollywood's elite. From Arjun Kapoor to Shraddha Kapoor and even Sonam Kapoor, Niharika's videos have been shared by them all. "My family is from all over south India and I use a little bit of every language I know. I love using a lot of "yelle" which means get lost in Telugu or "yenna" which means what in a sassy way in Tamil," she says. There's also 'champesta rascal' (I'll kill you in Telugu), Devuda (Oh my god in Telugu) Nin Ajji (your grandmother in Kannada) Addadada (Oh wow!) that Niharika uses which her audiences absolutely adore. Then of course there's the ubiquitous poda dei (scram) and maama (buddy) which feature in most of her content. With such local lingo making way into her content, even Niharika is surprised with the popularity it has garnered, including B-town celebs. "I honestly have the same question! I have no idea how people who don't speak the same language are so amused by the random local words that I throw in. I just love it that some words just hit differently when you say it in south Indian languages. I'm assuming even if people don't understand the words, they can relate to them," smiles Niharika.

With lingo, it’s age no bar
"I know that the minute I say 'macha', my audiences are already hooked. Local is the catchword here and since I am a Bengalurean, I love using Kannada lingo in my videos. And it's not just Bengalureans; people across the country send me DMs saying, 'we love what you say, even though we don't know the language.' That's also how I started incorporating sub titles into my content," observes actor and influencer Disha Madan.
Disha picks her lingo based on the target group of her video. "If I'm playing a mother, I say things like "bend yetthini" (beat you up black & blue) or laxanvag baa (come dressed decently); if I'm a student, I say stuff like "let's put one scene after this" which every Bengalurean will relate to; or if it's an uncle, then I say, "heli sir, yen samachara (what news)," states Disha. She concurs that she likes to cater to all age groups and categories and using local lingo has helped her do just that. "Nativity is what does it," opines Disha.

Didn’t understand? Just ask the other viewers in the comments section!
Meanwhile, digital creator Shraddha has the most legendary south-Indian word "Aiyyo" attached to her social media handle. But her videos feature varied characters: from Malathi akka (a Tulu-speaking neighbourhood aunty), to Mrs Kulkarni (a Marathi-speaking president of the apartment association) to Mrs Rina Dalal (the English-speaking Sima Taparia of real estate), Shraddha has most of India covered. And count in the Kannada videos, too which she also thoroughly enjoys making. "There is a lot of demand for local lingos in content, but I don't plan out my videos in advance. An idea just writes itself and I do it in the language that best suits it," shares Shraddha. Take her Tulu videos for instance. Even though it's a niche language that is largely spoken in Dakshina Kannada, Shraddha’s Tulu content has found appeal even in the North. "And I can literally see a cultural exchange happening in the comments section of my videos. Non-Tulu folks leave remarks that though they do not understand the language, they can relate to the expressions and my mannerisms. And then, a Tuluva viewer explains what the phrases actually mean. It just makes us content creators so happy to see these language barriers blurring. It's a little bit like how we south-Indians love dancing to Punjabi numbers in our parties even though we don’t get the language. That's what local lingo does... it always transcends barriers and connects to people with its sheer relatability," sums up Shraddha.
- Madhu Daithota