> Curry is a South Indian word referring to vegetables originally (Malakkarry means vegetables)

FWIW, Kannada has no such word. ಕರಿಬೇವು ("karibevu") refers specifically to the curry plant and (as far as I know) there is no word "kari" which refers to curries in general.

My parents had always told me that "curry" was, therefore, a generalization and anglicization of various dishes containing curry leaves. But seeing as "kari" is a word in several other South Indian languages, perhaps Kannada is just the odd one out.