Fem, fumble, fall down

Opinion | The ad was bad, its withdrawal was worse, but we will soon be in a happy place where nothing is ever banned

As the festive season comes around, brands try to be clever and innovative. But an ignorant bigot somewhere invariably gets “offended” and the ads are withdrawn. Not because the criticism is widespread but because the bigots have goon armies who can unleash violence on shops and salespersons with impunity.

This year it was Fabindia and Fem’s turn. The former merely used a faux Urdu phrase, which apparently would have ended Diwali as we know it, never mind that the festival has thrived and survived 500 years of non-Hindu government. But bigots don’t care for facts.

As for Fem, one can fault the ad for limited imagination but at least it tried. How to please sensibilities that are determined to be offended? Ideally, one should stand up to such voices, but for that the state should stand up for the rights of its citizens. Right now, the state — all three arms of it — has shown little interest in doing so. Which pretty much means the scorecard reads Bigots 10, India 0.