Jewellery brand Tanishq is under fire again for a new advertisement for its festive season collection 'Ekatvam', where one of the characters discourages the use of fireworks during Diwali. Social media users have accused Tanishq of hurting the sentiments of Hindus, leading to the jewellery company withdrawing a second 'Ekatvam' ad in less than a month.
The ad showed four women - Sayani Gupta, Nimrat Kaur, Neena Gupta and Alaya F speaking about their Diwali plans. Sayani Gupta's character says she will not be using firecrackers, and adds, "I don't think anyone should light any firecrackers, but lot of diyas.."
Also Read: Tanishq Ad Controversy: Will Brands Tread Cautiously On Social Issues?
This seemed to have irked some social media users, who accused the company of preaching how to celebrate Diwali to Hindus, killing tradition and allegedly defaming Hindu culture. #BoycottTanishq trended throughout the day, leading to the company withdrawing it and removing it from its social channels.
Gupta's message on fireworks in the ad, however, is in tune with a newly imposed ban on firecrackers by the National Green Tribunal in places with low air quality, along with several other states taking measures to prevent fireworks during Diwali due to air pollution and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Last month, Tanishq withdrew another Ekatvam ad which showed a Hindu-Muslim interfaith couple, after massive outrage and allegations of promoting 'Love Jihad'. The company is yet to provide a comment on the matter.
Tanishq's now deleted tweet was tweeted out some, including filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri, BJP MLA and National General Secretary C T Ravi and right-wing influencer Shefali Vaidya, who slammed the company for hurting Hindu sentiments by discouraging the use of fireworks during Diwali.
However, those outraging about the Tanishq ad may have overlooked the fact that the National Green Tribunal has put a ban on firecrackers in the National Capital Region of Delhi from midnight of November 9 to midnight of November 30, and have also instructed other states with cities having bad air quality to follow suit.
Yesterday, Delhi Police suspended the licenses issued for the sale of fireworks, and tweeted out about its efforts to crackdown on illegal sale of firework.
The stringent measures taken against use of fireworks is one of the many steps being taken to tackle the growing problem of air pollution in the country. Last year, 15 of the 20 most polluted cities in the world were in India, with Delhi topping the list in terms of worst air quality multiple times.
While a majority of the pollution stems from industrial smoke, vehicular combustion and stubble burning, use of fireworks during festivals is also regarded as a considerable contributor to bad air quality.
BOOM reached out to Tanishq for a comment, and the article will be updated upon receiving a response.