Dedications

The recent sacrilege of Burger King showing a picture of Goddess Laxmi on a Meat Burger is outright insult to India and Indians. The west has been regularly trying to belittle India by depicting Indian Gods on footwear and even undergarments, or the recent incident in Geneva of an Indian family touring Geneva seeing a statue of Lord Buddha used to hang and display shoes.

India as usual will whimper a whispering hue and cry, and that adds to the publicity which some MNC’s look for. They need to create a sensation and the brand gets noticed and even negative publicity is publicity. Nothing is sacred anymore, anything and everything can be used as long as it makes money. Companies can sell their souls for profits. The words integrity, ethics, respect or for that matter simple honesty is not a part of business anymore. It is just empty hollow words on a web site or presentation material of the company. When companies don’t respect or can’t even protect or take care of their employees, what are they going to care of clients and consumers?

The stupid part is how some political parties or religious groups back in India would react to some company or institution in the west insulting Indian Gods or culture by trying to instigate and take mileage out of it with vandalism and destroying public property. We had one incident in Mangalore where a mob rampage a pub and beat up couples enjoying a drink, saying it is against Indian culture. What culture are we talking about when gay sex is legalized? Prophet Mohammed’s cartoons appear in some Danish newspaper, and we agitate here in India.

Why can’t we not agitate and hit back intelligently. Hit back where it hurts real hard and bad. The answer is patronizing Indian products. Just imagine the effect and impact if a huge percentage of Indians stop buying Coca-Cola or a Pepsi. One cannot ban or throw International brands out of India, but none of them can shove their produce down our throat. Imagine only Amir and Shahrukh left patronizing them as they are brand ambassadors for them. Unfortunately Indian celebrities too, pride in endorsing International brands. Once I remembering seeing a programme of pseudo Industrialists discussing how to promote ‘Brand India’ and one of them drives in Maybach.

Today the whole world wants to be in India, as we are the biggest consumer base waiting to be tapped. Unfortunately we Indians we are so stuck up and have a fetish to display and consume International Brands, these companies thrive, and get away even insulting our culture and religions. The faults also lie with Indian products / produce that compromise on quality and thus not able to make a world mark. I can’t think of any one Indian brand that is there on an International level.

I sometimes wonder how the world especially US successfully denies or delays Indian products / produce under the pretext it does not match their quality standards. A Tata Nano is denied entry into US till it does not match their standards. My question is a sub standard Nano being sold in India? I am not able to understand why a Coke in India taste different than one sold in UK, why the Burger taste different here than from the one in Middle East. Why is the standard and quality of taste not the same in India? Why is quality and standards only an issue with Indian products being sold internationally?

I make a conscious attempt (though I fail many times) to avoid International brands / produce. I try to preach at home and my kids listen to me patiently and attentively sipping their coke. I try to steer my kids away from MacDonald’s but they have me take them to MacDonald’s, and the clown mascot of Mac looks at me with his wicked smile.

# posted by Sunny Fernandes @ 1:11 AM