Linguistic barrier...

Hey folks, a strange incident occured to me today which made me write this article.I just finished my errands and was waiting in the Don Mills subway station. It was then i met an Indian lady annd her canadian friend. They have recently moved from Windsor. They were not sure about their routes and seeked my help. The lady recognized me as an Indian and started talking to me in Hindi. I'm from Tamilnadu(southern part of India) and i'm not very fluent in Hindi. I can understand but couldnt speak. When i told her that, her friend(Canadian) was really surprised. Then both of us explained him that there are so many languages. I also told him that people of different states converese in English. He then said in a funny way that inspite of having so many languages in your country you guys still need English.On a serious note, i felt really embarassed. I couldnt help but think about this on my way back home. There are so many discussions going around in Tamilnadu about making Hindi as a compulsory language at schools. In most of the states in India, people learn Hindi at school. Tamilnadu is an exception. It is very unfortunate that we are not able to learn our national language.
Actually speaking, this is not the first time i fellt bad for not knowing HIndi. I would like to quote one more incident on this behalf. Earlier i was working in Bangalore(India). There were so many people from different states. All the comments, gossips and jokes will be made in Hindi. Though i was able to understand it i will not be able to enjoy it. i always loose the essence. I'm sure that this might have happened to many other Tamilians as well. I really dont understand what justification, the tamilnadu government has for not making Hindi as a compulsory language at schools like other states.
I'm really proud to be an Tamilian, but first I'm an Indian. What has happened to our unity in diversity. I love my language(Tamil) and i'm proud of its history too. But that should'nt in any way be a hurddle to learn a new language. After all that's also an Indian language - our National language.
Our language(Tamil), has an amzing history. There are numerous ways to protect it. Clearly this is not the right way. It is high time to make changes in this regard now. Because it does not only affect people like me but also some of the members of Parliament(MP)from tamilnadu. They are having hard time during the discussions in the parliament. Just imagine the condition of an MP in a parliament without knowing Hindi. Atleast now the government should take some stteps to incorporate Hindi at schools.
On the otherhand , we also shouldn't just wait for them to take steps. There are so many ways to learn a language. The parents should see to it that their kids know the language. You have no idea where they might end up. Moreover they know an additional language. The next genration should not face this issue. Believe me guys. It is essential. Initially i was also very much annoyed with the system in tamilnadu. But there's no point in just being annoyed. Instead of trying to pass the blame on the system or government lets see what we can do. Ther are numerous ways to learn the language, through books or internet or private tuitions. Lets find a suitable way to learn Hindi.
Feel free to comment about your views on this. If you have any incident to share in this regards, please do so. It can be serios or funny or enbarassing....