Fabindia withdraws ad after BJP leaders say it ‘defaces Diwali’ | Watch

• Clothing brand Fabindia deleted an advertisement from social media after facing backlash from BJP leaders. The brand had come out with a collection called ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz’ for the upcoming festive season. BJP leaders accused Fabindia of defacing the festival of Diwali by linking the festival to Urdu terms. BJP leader Tejasvi Surya claimed that the collection was an ‘attempt of abrahamisation of Hindu festivals’. Surya also went on to say that the models in the advertisement were ‘depicted without traditional Hindu clothes’. The post by Fabindia has now been deleted & the company has issued a clarification. Fabindia clarified that ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz’ was not its Diwali collection & the ‘Jhil Mil Se Diwali’ collection is yet to be launched. BJP’s CT Ravi also tweeted against Fabindia & said that ‘we will find a different outlet’. Some social media users also demanded that Fabindia must be boycotted. Last year, a similar kind of controversy had erupted around jewellery brand Tanishq’s Diwali advertisement. Tanishq was bombarded with abuse for its ‘Ekatvam’ campaign that featured an interfaith baby shower. The brand owned by Tatas was accused of promoting love jihad. Tanishq eventually ended up withdrawing the advertisement and also issued an apology.