Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal sparked a debate on the use of gender-neutral pronouns after sharing his opinion on what he called the ‘pronoun illness.’ The issue arose when LinkedIn’s AI bot referred to him as ‘They’ instead of ‘He.’ With a screenshot highlighting the use of ‘they/their,’ he took a jab at these practices, suggesting that they were borrowed from Western culture.
In a post on X, Aggarwal wrote, “Most of us in India have no clue about politics of this pronouns illness. People do it because it’s become expected in our corporate culture, especially MNCs. Better to send this illness back where it came from. Our culture has always had respect for all. No need for new pronouns.”
Aggarwal’s comments were met with mixed reactions. Some agreed with his stance, while others highlighted the existence of gender-neutral pronouns in Indian languages and questioned the harm caused by their use.
Artist Varun Grover and other users satirically criticized Aggarwal’s remarks, arguing that true respect should extend to individuals’ choices, including their preferred pronouns.
The debate highlights the ongoing cultural and linguistic complexities surrounding the use of gender-neutral pronouns, particularly in the context of globalization and cross-cultural interactions.
