Kalyan Jewellers, one of the largest jewellery chain in India, recently sparked a controversy after it claimed that nose rings were first introduced in India by the Mughals. “Nose rings were first in India by the Mughals from the Middle East,” it alleged.
On Saturday (June 26), popular Twitter user Sunaina Holey pointed out that the ‘Marathi Nath’ page of the Kalyan Jewellers’ website erroneously attributed the introduction of nose rings to Mughals. She tweeted, “Nath Or Nose Rings weren’t introduced by Mughals in India. Please don’t twist the history. It exists since ancient times & became popular around the 9th & 10th centuries, when naths became a status symbol. Requesting you to write facts.”
Citing historical references, Hindu activist Saumya Mishra emphasised that nose rings were a part of 16 shringars (makeup) used by the Hindu women. “It was present even before Muslims came into existence,” she added.
Yes. Correct it. This is the oldest reference.
— Saumya mishra (@Saumya_miishra) June 27, 2021
Goddess Sita use to wear it. It is part of 16 shringars of Hindu Women.
It was present even before M*slim came into existence. pic.twitter.com/oINZvLYf4s
Following the outrage on social media, Kalyan Jewellers was quick to issue a clarification. While responding to Sunaina Holey, the jewellery chain said, “Thank you for bringing this to our notice. We have updated the blog and corrected this error.”
Thank you for bringing this to our notice. We have updated the blog and corrected this error.
— Kalyan Jewellers (@KalyanJewellers) June 26, 2021
At the time of writing this article, the contentious claim about Mughals was removed by Kalyan Jewellers. Nose rings are widely referred to as ‘Marathi Nath’ by people living in Maharashtra, Goa, Belgaum and Karwar. They wear the nose rings during pujas, marriages and other occasions of significance.
Tanishq removes controversial advertisement glorifying ‘love jihad’
In October last year, a massive outrage broke over various social media platforms with users calling for the boycott of the jewellery brand Tanishq for their contentious advertisement glorifying love jihad. The ad released on October 9 showed a pregnant Hindu woman walking with her mother-in-law, who distinctly belonged to the Muslim faith. The Muslim mother-in-law then led the Hindu daughter-in-law to the garden area, where the god-bharai ceremony was set up according to Hindu traditions.
Shocked, the daughter-in-law asked the mother-in-law why the ceremony was set up in that manner since “these things are not followed in the house”. To that, the smiling mother-in-law told her that while this might not be their tradition (since they are a Muslim family), making daughters happy was a universal tradition. The advertisement sparked massive outrage on social media websites, with more than 17,000 users tweeting with the hashtag ‘#Boycott Tanishq, calling for the boycott of the jewellery brand for promoting the concept of ‘love jihad’ and hurting the sentiments of Hindus.
