Zomato launched an ad campaign on World Environment Day, allegedly aimed at promoting cleanliness and recycling of plastic waste. A Dalit character named ‘Kachra’ from the Oscar-nominated film Lagaan becomes various objects in the ad — a paperweight, table, flower pot, hand towel, jacket, and lamp. The ad intends to raise awareness about the amount of waste (kachra) associated with each object and concludes with the hashtag #Let’srecycleKachra.
This controversial advertisement, which utilizes a Dalit character as a mere prop, has drawn flak for its insensitivity towards the Dalits. It reminded me of a meeting I had in Mumbai with an advertising agency. During the interaction, the interviewer inquired about the topics I write about. Among other things, I mentioned that I write about Dalit issues, particularly in the urban context. Their response was one of surprise: “Like for real? Do Dalits actually exist here in Mumbai? Like they are currently around us or something?”
I wondered if they confused Dalits with aliens or maybe some form of pyschic energy who may or may not be around us.
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A collective failure
While I understand that it is insufficient to make sweeping statements about everyone in the industry, it is perplexing how an overtly casteist advertisement could make it through multiple stages of the campaign creation process. This process typically involves brainstorming, research, storyboarding, mood boarding, multiple meetings, editing, and many stages of post-production. One would expect that at least one person involved in this entire process would recognise and raise concerns about the highly casteist portrayal.
This is not a new phenomenon in the advertising industry. Several years ago, Kent released a casteist advertisement for their atta maker, which received significant criticism. The ad conveyed the message, “Are you allowing your maid to knead atta dough by hand? Choose KENT Atta & Bread Maker for hands-free kneading of dough. Let automation take care of hygiene this time! Don’t compromise on health and purity.” This ad implied that the involvement of domestic workers in the process was unhygienic, promoting the product as a superior alternative.
Similarly, the biscuit company Mario uses the tagline “Baked to Perfection, Untouched by Hands.” In the Indian context, it is important to note that these advertisements go beyond a mere concern for hygiene. In my opinion, they predominantly carry casteist undertones, perpetuating the belief that certain individuals’ touch is considered “impure” based on the notion of purity associated with caste. It is hard to miss such campaign themes when seen in the backdrop of centuries of caste discrimination this country has witnessed.
In the Indian context, the touch of Dalits has been considered impure, perpetuating social discrimination. This issue is significant enough that Indian politicians have undertaken “eating with Dalit” tours, often accompanied by photoshoots, to showcase their acceptance of food prepared by Dalits. Many years back, a minister from the BJP landed in controversy when it was alleged that during a much-publicised ‘eat with Dalit food tour’, he didn’t eat food cooked by Dalit and instead ordered food from outside. I sincerely hope it wasn’t ordered using Zomato.
If such an ad with openly racist overtones were made in the US, it would likely cause an uproar, and companies would be expected to own up to their mistake. However, in this case, Zomato’s half-hearted apology itself gives the impression that they had good intentions of promoting environmental conservation, but unfortunately, the meaning got recycled in the execution of the ad.
It is ironic that an ad on environment conservation has been created to mock Dalits, considering Dalits are the original environmentalists in this civilisation. Those with even a basic understanding of the environment know that that Dalits are often forced into professions where they have to actively clean and nurture the country, contributing to its sustainability and livability. Despite their service, they are labeled as “polluted” by an ungrateful nation.
This stands in stark contrast to the privileged Savarna approach to environmentalism, where small acts like picking up a few Kurkure wrappers at the beach or wearing sustainable fashion from H&M are considered sufficient to claim “environmentally conscious and sustainable” on social media bios. This performative activism often garners accolades within elite circles of the city, where everyone floats happily in their ‘casteless bubbles’.
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Pop-activism and the hip-ocracy
In her article Why Dalits Dislike Environmentalists, Gail Omvedt discusses the inadequate representation and understanding of Adivasi issues within the environmental movement. She highlights a common sentiment expressed by Adivasis, questioning “why environmentalists who claim to love forests don’t come and live there, offering their city flats in return?”
This is also a fact that the desi marketing team has a desire to connect with all the woke issues of the foreign world but remain oblivious to local problems like ‘caste’. This is one of the reasons why Indian corporations are ready to say “Black Lives Matter” but not “Caste Matters.” Not that their saying of caste matters is going to annihilate the caste system because, in the end, pop corporate activism fizzes out like a can of Coca-Cola.
However, from an observational standpoint, the sheer hypocrisy even in the choice of pop-activism reveals the bias of individuals working for corporate companies and highlights a general lack of awareness among the privileged members of society who think recycling a Dalit character is sufficient to save the environment.
Could a diverse team on the Zomato ad campaign have reduced this future embarrassment? To some extent. It is crucial that more individuals from marginalised backgrounds sit at the positions of power where they are actively involved in decision-making. Otherwise, the “tokenism” of mere diversity without genuine power-sharing would be as useless as the used tokens of the Delhi Metro.
Anurag is a multimedia artist and host of Anurag Minus Verma Podcast. He tweets @confusedvichar. Views are personal.
(Edited by Anurag Chaubey)