Will You Wear This T-Shirt?

After 26/11, Pak-bashing has become fashionable. Tantra's latest line of tees takes it a step further. Distasteful or deserving? You decide.

Will You Wear This T-Shirt?

After 26/11, Pak-bashing has become fashionable. Tantra's latest line of tees takes it a step further. Distasteful or deserving? You decide.

On the racks of the Tantra shelves at Rhythm House in Colaba lies a T-shirt that makes a controversial statement "Paki Jokes (Part Six): What's the difference between a Pakistani and a vacuum cleaner?

You have to plug in the vacuum cleaner before it sucks." The picture next to it shows a "Pakistani" dressed in combat gear with "Jehad" emblazoned on his sleeve, has three thought bubbles floating around him. They read, "eat" "sleep" and "Kashmir".
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Human rights activist Teesta Setalvad calls it sad and shocking because it means India's middle-class has stopped thinking.

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Actress Nandita Das said it's tragic that animosity was being encouraged, calling the T-shirt "disrespectful depiction".

"This is a civil society and corporates who should be improving people-to-people understanding are widening the rift.

T-shirts have been used as a revolutionary tool to bring about positive change. When the State was behaving in a certain way, tees were used to protest.

Peace T-shirts are a favourite. I can't believe it has come to this! But I think the young still want to wear peace and friendship, not hate," she said.

No apologies

At a time when the country is enraged at racial discrimination faced by Indian students in Australia and Canada, wouldn't this tee, part of the popular brand's new range called Baddies of the Af-Pak region, appear hypocritical?

Ranjiv Ramchandani, director, Tantra, can't understand what the fuss is about. "Instead of telling a joke, we put it on a T-shirt.

It is a joke, but we are making a comment too," he said, unfazed. The brand doesn't believe it's sending out a wrong messageu00a0 among its fan base. "After 26/11, nothing is wrong.
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I am sure Pakistanis make fun of us. Their textbooks and TV is full of anti-India propaganda. We are just getting down to their level," he said.
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How would Pakistanis visiting India react? "Anyone who has any sense will realise why this is happening. This is the popular sentiment now," shrugs the man behind the 10-year-old brand.
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Psychologist Anjali Chhabria seconds him. "Before 26/11, it was all okay. But now, Indians don't want to be tolerant of Pakistan. Since justice takes time, even wearing a T-shirt like this can prove cathartic it's a way of venting frustration."
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'Why generalise?'

The audience is divided on this debate. "There is no proof that Pakistan was behind 26/11. So, why should we generalise?" says Karisma Ruparella (20), BMM student at KC College, who says she'll never be seen wearing the tee.

She finds support in Muddassir Usmani (25), an entrepreneur who insists he "will slap any person wearing the T-shirt".
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He says this is no better after India made a hullabaloo over racial attacks in Australia. "In fact, it's worse. They are breeding enmity between two countries," he said.

But media professional Gautam Sheth feels Pakistan has had it coming for a long time. "Why won't I wear it? It's after all, just a tee. But it's a tee that helps me spread a message. Pakistan should know what we think about them."

(With inputs by Soumya Mukerji)

Tantra's other faux pas?

Tantra got into a spat with All India Radio over its T-shirt that read, "This is All India Radio.

We apologise for inflicting our beloved listeners with sub-standard quality of programming, bored newsreaders and sloppy production for 50 years since inception/
Independence."

T Jairaj, additional director general of AIR said, "It is terrorist attitude to tarnish someone's repute. We don't want to curtail any rights, but even the Supreme Court says freedom isn't absolute."

Ranjiv Manchandani, MD of the brand, said, "People take potshots at 200 things that the government does. Should the government raise objection if I talk of potholes and bad roads?" The design has been withdrawn from most stands.

Other Tantra slogans

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If you aren't supposed to eat animals, why are they made of meat?