They/Them vs Us: Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal’s pronoun comments reek of queerphobia, ignorance

The co-founder and CEO of Ola, Bhavish Aggarwal, is making headlines afterpostingabout the usage of 'they/them' pronouns by LinkedIn's AI chatbot. Aggarwal said on X that he had asked the bot about himself and received gender-neutral information.

Aggarwal called this the 'pronoun illness' and ranted about how MNCs were forcing Indians to use them in professional discourse. He also lamented that he sees many CVs with pronouns these days. We ‘need to know where to draw the line in following the West blindly’ he said.

The OLA chief's comments have triggered a storm online with people slamming him for being insensitive towards gender identities while others aresupporting himfor exposing an issue that is affecting Indians in the corporate world.

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So let me give some context

The concept of gender-neutral pronouns like 'they/them' is becoming increasingly common with more people mentioning their pronouns while introducing themselves and asking for the same. This is a mark of respect, especially towards queer people.

As Aggarwal mentioned, it is indeed true that several resumes now see 'he/him', 'she/her' etc written next to the candidates' names.

While it may look like a recent trend in the English language, this is far from the truth.References to singular pronounsgo as far back as 1386, with Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales and Shakespeare's Hamlet in 1599, standing out. It was later that people started using such terms as 'they' to define people who are gender-fluid, non-binary, or gender-queer. But the terms were always spoken, used, and written down.

So what about India?

Contrary to what Aggarwal wrote, the usage of pronouns is neither an 'illness' nor a new phenomenon in Indian culture.

Several of our languages have words that are gender-neutral. In Hindi, 'Tum' and 'Aap'-- which is actually a 'plural' form of you-- are just a few of the plethora of words that are used frequently as a mark of respect towards other people.

While these words might not have been intended for non-binary people, they are being increasingly used to respect friends, family, and co-workers.

The usage of terms like 'illness' to refer to anything about queer people is something that has been witnessed for ages. Mr Aggarwal should note that once, even women's education and universal franchise were considered to be socially evil or diseases that would harm society.

Corporate gatekeeping is dangerous and this incident is yet another example of how the career path of queer people is fraught with bigotry and phobia. A closeted trans person working in one of the many Ola factories across the country, would now never even dare to come out at work, for fear that their colleagues may follow in their boss' path.

He also denounced Microsoft and LinkedIn for allegedly 'lecturing' Indians and criticised the DEI (Diversity, Equality and Inclusion) efforts at corporate companies. What he doesn't realise is that DEI is a lifeline for queer people to enter the maze that is corporate culture, and is a way to create a level-playing field for all genders, not just women or non-binary folks.

Real-life consequences

Aggarwal's views are replayed around the world in social media echo chambers and have real-life impacts.

Recent research has suggested that those who use 'they/them' in their CVshave a lesser chance of getting hired than those who don't.

Researchers sent out 180 job postings for entry-level candidates with the 'they/them' pronouns included. The results revealed an 8% decrease in interest by companies and employers for such resumes when compared to CVs with no pronouns

Ironically, more than 64 per cent of the companies where the resumes were submitted claimed to be ‘Equal Opportunity Employers’, revealing a disparity between companies' rhetoric and their actually walking the talk.

What is even surprising is that Aggarwal's company Ola Cabs had earlier put out promotional posts during Pride Month. Were they just to attract queer customers? What basis do they have if the company's co-founder calls the lived experiences of millions of Indians an 'illness' imported from abroad?

Queerphobia in a world of acceptance

Aggarwal's comments are part of a long list of tech CEOs indulging in queerphobia, with the most famous one being X's ownerElon Muskhimself.

As the Ola top boss later wrote (after pushback), India does indeed have a long history of respecting transgender people.

But it is also a reality thattransgender teachers are thrown out of their jobs, and people from the community are at a greater risk of being forced into sex work and begging.

A trans-actor was, just a few days ago, allegedlydenied a hotel roomin Pune despite her having pre-booked it.

Bhavish Aggarwal's comments are insensitive, tone-deaf, and come at a time when the country is slowly moving towards greater acceptance of queer people.

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)