Tanishq by Titan Group recently put out an advertisement featuring an inter religion couple. BoycottTanishq trends on Social Media and is among the top trends.
More than 17,000 people tweeted with the hashtag calling for a ban on the advertisement and a boycott of the jewellery brand.
The advertisement, which was released on 9 October, shows a Muslim family preparing a traditional Hindu baby shower for their pregnant Hindu daughter-in-law.
Several users on the site accused the jewellery brand of promoting ‘love jihad and ‘fake secularism’ through the advertisement.
‘Love jihad’ is a term coined by Hindu extremist groups, referring to an alleged campaign by Muslims to convert Hindu girls in the guise of love.
Following the backlash the ad was pulled down and the YouTube link for the ad was made private, making it unavailable for people to view it.
While the backlash and subsequent removal of the ad may have pacified a few, many users see it as succumbing to defeat. The fact that it was promoting harmony and still faced such criticism is an irony in itself.
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Shashi Tharoor, Rajdeep Sardesai and others took to twitter to slam this useless and mindless boycotting.
“If Hindu-Muslim “ekatvam” irks them so much, why don’t they boycott the longest surviving symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity in the world — India?” Congress MP Shashi Tharoor wrote on Twitter. Screenwriter Aniruddha Guha, commented: “LOL, we live in a time when an ad is withdrawn for literally *promoting* communal harmony. And we think COVID-19 is India’s deadliest virus right now.” Here’s how netizens reacted after the ad was pulled down.
The advertisement by Tanishq promoted a new jewellery line called ‘Ekatvam‘.
In the 45-second advertisement, members of a Muslim family can be seen celebrating a traditional Hindu ceremony. It is for their daughter-in-law who appears to be a South Indian.
The ceremony is called Seemantham or Valaikaapu. It is where first-time mothers or recently-expecting mothers are given gold ornaments and food. At times sandalwood is applied on their hands and faces, to pray for her safe delivery and happy life. It is typically celebrated in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Telangana.