Karachi Bakery defends name as protesters storm outlet amid rising India-Pak tensions: ‘Not a Pakistani brand'

Hyderabad-based bakery chain Karachi Bakery was founded by Khanchand Ramnani in 1953. He came to Indian during the 1947 partition.

Hyderabad-based Karachi Bakery found itself in the middle of protests and backlashes following Operation Sindoor on May 7, where Indian armed forces targeted nine terrorist infrastructure sites in retaliation for the Pahalgam attack on April 22. Viral videos on social media show activist groups storming an outlet of the bakery chain, demanding a change in its name. They argued that an Indian establishment shouldn’t be named after a city in Pakistan. Following the chaos, the owners of the bakery have issued a clarification about the store’s name.

Karachi Bakery is owned by Rajesh and Harish Ramanani. (X/@PTI_News)

Owners Rajesh and Harish Ramanani told PTI that the bakery was founded by their grandfather Khanchand Ramnani in 1953 after he migrated to India during the partition of 1947.

“It has been 73 years. Our grandfather named it after Karachi as he came to India after Partition,” one of the owners told PTI.

“We request the Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and senior officers of administration to support to prevent any change in the name. People are putting up Tricolour in the outlets of the bakery across the city,” they continued.

The owners stressed, “Kindly support us as we are an Indian brand and not a Pakistani brand.”

Take a look at their interview:

Social media users also showed their support for the owners. An individual wrote, “The owner is a Sindhi who came to India from Karachi. Please do not do this.” Another remarked, “This is next-level stupidity. There are Sindhis, Parsis who all moved out of Karachi during partition. In fact, there are people with Karachiwala surnames. That doesn't mean you end up attacking people. Let our armed forces deal with our enemies at the border and just pray for them.”

This is not the first time Karachi Bakery has faced protests amid escalating tensions between India and Pakistan. In 2019, people stormed an outlet of the Hyderabad-based bakery chain in Bengaluru’s Indiranagar, demanding a change in name following the Pulwama attack. The terror attack claimed the lives of 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) troopers.

At that time, the bakery issued a statement clarifying the establishment’s origin and emphasising that “The essence of Karachi Bakery is absolutely Indian by heart and will remain so. We request everybody to refrain from any kind of misconceptions.”