Vogue India Editor Criticized For “Hindu Gods” Comment

by Ruthie Friedlander | 3:18 pm, June 16th, 2010

We were all excited for last year’s Fashion’s Night Out. Photo-ops were abundant on September 10th of last year, with celebrities and shoppers parading around their favorite stores all in support of the fashion industry.

“From Brooklyn to Brazil to Boston, the fashion industry is already buzzing about the news that…Fashion’s Night Out is back,” the event’s site exclaims.

We’re looking forward to it, as well. But one editor over at Vogue India seems to be a little more excited than most for this year’s Fashion’s Night Out and is coming under fire for a comment she made regarding Fashion’s Night Out’s popularity.

Vogue India editor, Priya Tanna apparently told WWD,

“Fashion’s Night Out last year was the first luxury shopping festival to take place in India. It followed three consecutive days of rain and took place during an inauspicious time on the Hindu calendar for buying expensive items. But neither the rains nor the Hindu gods could stop the shoppers from coming.”

Rajan Zed, president of Universal Society of Hinduism, found Tanna guilty of inappropriately trivializing the Hindu Gods for the sake of Fashion’s Night Out — a clearly non-religiously oriented event — and Bhavna Shinde from the Forum for Hindu Awakening has asked the editor to make a formal apology to the Hindu community for her thoughtless comment. Such a comment has yet to be made.

We’re excited for a night of shopping too, but bringing Hindu dieties into the picture? Seems to us that’s a bit of a stretch — even if there will be some discounts.

[via]