Right now, fuel prices are simply astronomical. Most people feel the pinch of price rises in gas cylinders, cooking oil and other commodities. Millions of Indians have lost their jobs and a huge number of Indians have been pushed back into poverty recently. Worryingly, a belligerent China has dug in and refused to restore Indian territory captured last year. But on social media, prosperous, privileged Indians are not bothered by these issues. They are outraging about the name of Fabindia’s fashion line. Some have gone further to say #NoBindiNoBusiness.
This hashtag has been around for a long time – Indian women have posted pictures of themselves traditionally attired along with their bindis
A lot of women love wearing the bindi which makes them feel and look beautiful. This is a lovely trend that has been around for years now.
Some now want businesses to show models visibly sporting a bindi. When it became clear that the only issue they could detect in the Fabindia fashion line was the Urdu name, the outragers decided to outrage about something else. Now the fact that the models did not sport bindis and as such could be from any religious community, became a problem.
Fair enough. But #NoBindiNoBusiness? Why exactly?
They supported the trend; which seems very much like a threat to brands in the way that it is framed.
The bindi or tilak is a part of the identity of a lot of people. But then, it isn't for many as well.
They felt that wearing or not wearing the bindi is a matter of choice and not sporting one doesn’t erode one’s faith or identity.
This tweet raises the question – is one's faith defined by the bindi? Is it not a matter of a personal decision based on the occasion or a brand aesthetic in a given situation?
Some drew attention to the fact that a lot of brands have a certain aesthetic. The question is, should they all be penalised for this?
The bindi is widely worn in India but many groups and communities do not have the tradition of wearing a bind. Should all the women from those groups and communities suffer asks this tweet… just because X number of people have a problem with Y brand for Z reason.
It’s a choice, as this tweet says. We have seen how it always falls to women to uphold ‘honour’ or ‘tradition’ or ‘decorum’ or whatever euphemism people choose to use for what is essentially patriarchal control of women and their choices.
For the nth time, can we all please stop telling women what to wear and what not to wear; do and not do? It is getting a little exhausting to have to keep repeating this.
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