After the selection of ‘Hitler,’ a men’s clothing store in India is being urged to change its name due to upset in the local community.
Proprietor Rajesh Shah asserts that he was not aware the name could be offensive, as it originates from a nickname given to his business partner’s grandfather.
The ‘Hitler’ store has sparked outrage among residents and the small Jewish community in Ahmedabad, located in Gujarat province north of Mumbai.
Mr. Shah insists there was no intention to harm with the shop’s name.
“I had only heard that Hitler was a strict man until we applied for the trademark permission,” he stated.
“It was only recently that we came across information about Hitler online.”
He explains that the name Hitler was attributed to his business partner Manish Chandani’s grandfather due to his strict demeanor, having no connection to the Nazi dictator.
However, local Jews disagree and believe the owners were fully aware of the name’s implications.
“In the city of Mahatma Gandhi and non-violence, how can anyone celebrate a person like Hitler who is infamous for murdering millions of unarmed ordinary civilians? We, as a community, have expressed our concerns to the proprietors, and it seems they do not share our viewpoints,” remarked Nikitin Contractor, convener of the Friends of Israel organization from Vadodara.
The controversy surrounding the clothing store follows a similar uproar in Italy, where a supermarket in the northern part of the country was found stocking wine bottles featuring Hitler in provocative poses, including one with his arm raised in a Nazi salute. Additionally, one bottle was labeled ‘Mein Kampf’ and another bore the phrase “Ein volk, ein Reich, ein Fuhrer” (one people, one empire, one Fuhrer).
by John Jackson
