Christians India outraged over the use of a cross in advertisement
Christians in Bhopal India are upset with Baba Ramdev, a prominent yoga teacher, when a cross appeared in his advertisement for Patanjali products. The cross shown in the video commercial was a part of the British East India company logo which was used to represent foreign products. The advertisement encouraged viewers to celebrate India's Independence Day by using Patanjali natural products instead of foreign ones.
The advertisement showed the animated logo forming three crosses with a voice-over in Hindi saying, "Foreign companies are very dangerous for our country." Jerry Paul, the convener of a Christian organization called the Sarva Isai Mahasabha, expressed his dismay at the use of the cross in the advertisement and wrote to Ramdev calling on him to stop airing the advertisement.
"They must oppose foreign companies and promote their own products but no one should use cross for the purpose and must not unnecessarily link Christianity with them," Paul said.
He also mentioned in an interview with IBTimes India that a lot of Christians across the country use Patanjali products and would want to continue but they do not want their sentiments hurt. Paul threatened to launch a campaign to boycott the brand and take legal action if the advertisement continues to air.
Paul had filed a different complaint against Ramdev for distributing pamphlets containing disparaging words against Christians. Earlier this month, Ramdev lamented the fact that Christians are commended for their charitable works while converting people but Hindu sadhus and charitable trusts are doing the same thing without attempting to convert anybody.
The series of "freedom" advertisements by Patanjali was also criticized by advertising executives for a different reason. A printed version implied that multinational companies are still enslaving and looting India by "selling soap, shampoo, toothpaste, cream, powder and similar daily items at exorbitant price."
Piyush Pandey, the executive chairman and creative director of Ogilvy & Mather India, condemned the advertisement for its negative tone. "Calling MNCs thieves and using words like lootna is not a nice thing to do. I have a problem with the usage of these words. Some of the MNCs are more Indian than many Indian companies for they have been in India for over 70 years," he told First Post.
