* Census data varies: The Indian census doesn't always categorize speakers based on their primary language, making it hard to get a precise count.
* Language evolution: Telugu is a spoken language with many regional dialects and variations, so defining who is a "Telugu speaker" can be subjective.
* Migration and diaspora: Many Telugu speakers live outside of India, making it challenging to account for them in Indian statistics.
However, based on the 2011 Indian Census, 81.4 million people reported Telugu as their mother tongue. This makes it the third most spoken language in India, after Hindi and Bengali.
It's important to note that this number only represents native speakers and doesn't include those who speak Telugu as a second language. The actual number of Telugu speakers in India is likely significantly higher than this official count.