Fabindia collection sparks row online

NEW DELHI: Ethnic wear retailer Fabindia’s new collection launched before Diwali, christened ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz’ ran into a social media storm on Monday with several users urging consumers to boycott the brand.

People protesting against the campaign called it “de-Hinduising Deepawali”. With the #BoycottFabIndia hashtag trending on Twitter, the IPO-bound company was forced to take down some of its tweets promoting the collection.

When contacted by TOI, however, a Fabindia spokesperson said the collection titled ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz’ is not its Diwali collection.

“Our Diwali collection, called “Jhilmil si Diwali” is yet to be launched,” she said. “We at Fabindia have always stood for celebration of India with its myriad traditions in all hues. In fact ‘Fabindia – Celebrate India’ is our tagline and also a wordmark. Our current capsule of products under the name Jashn-e-Riwaaz is a celebration of Indian traditions. The phrase means that, literally.”

The New Delhi-headquartered company is not the first one to face backlash on social media for its campaign or collection. Tata’s jewellery brand Tanishq drew the ire of a section of social media when it launched an ad that promoted inter-faith marriage. With netizens slamming the viral ad, #boycottTanishq started trending on social media.

Similarly, a recent ad by clothing brand Manyaavar featuring Bollywood actor Alia Bhatt ran into a social roadblock. Tyre maker Ceat’s recent commercial featuring Aamir Khan urging people to refrain from burning crackers, too, landed in controversy.

“Trolls, competitor-encouraged bots, sensitive people, hyper-sensitive people, hurt-people and all kinds of robots and human beings reside in this space we call social-media! And they intermingle undistinguished. Anyone who has been observing the trends on a hyper-sensitive social media would not have attempted this for sure, ” said brand expert Harish Bijoor, who runs boutique consulting outfit Bijoor Consults.



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