Tanishq Trolling: No Scope for Secular Messages in Today’s India?

Going forward, what does the Tanishq trolling mean for the ad industry?

A baby shower got morphed into love jihad, and a message on Ekatvam meaning “unity” became a target of hate.

(Photo: The Quint)

A baby shower became love jihad, and a message on Ekatvam meaning "unity" turned into a target of hate. The Tanishq ad controversy has become much more than simply an advertisement facing backlash online, instead, it's become a running commentary on intolerance.

On 12 October, Twitter was flooded with #BoycottTanishq tweets because its new jewellery promotion showed a traditional Hindu baby shower in an interfaith marriage between a Hindu girl and a Muslim boy. The ad content resulted in massive trolling on social media, with some asking calling it "anti-Hindu" and others alleging that it promotes "love jihad".

Despite Tanishq taking down the ad, the criticism did not die down. After it was retracted, it was the supporters of the ad who criticised company's actions saying that Tanishq did not stand up for the secular message that it put out in the ad.

What message does Tanishq’s action send? More than advertising guidelines, do brands now need to be mindful of trolls’ sentiments? Going forward what does this incident mean for those in the industry? Tune in to The Big Story!