This article presents a holistic view of ideological barriers to bilingual policy implementation in Sri Lanka, a conflict-ridden postcolonial nation-state. I examine Sinhalese youth and adults' Tamil as a second language (TSL) learning and speaking practices across three contexts: a multilingual school, a program for government servants, and an NGO. Though limited interactional spaces emerge where Sinhalese students speak Tamil, bilingual policies continue to reinforce inequalities between the Sinhalese Buddhist majority and Tamil-speaking minority groups.