Nestle says Kitkat wrappers with Lord Jagannath pics 'already withdrawn'
It seems like Nestle India has fallen into trouble! The packaging of the particular batch of the KitKat travel break chocolate had picture of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Mata Subhadra on its wrappers which created a rage on the internet. The consumers accused the company of hurting religious sentiments by using the sacred images on Kitkat wrappers. The company expressed regret and said that as a pre-emptive action, it withdrew those packs from the market last year. "We do understand the sensitivity of the matter and regret if we have inadvertently hurt anyone's sentiment. We had already withdrawn these packs from the market last year. We thank you for your understanding and support," said a Nestle spokesperson.
According to the company, these were travel packs meant to celebrate beautiful local destinations. Nestle, which owns brands such as Maggi, Nescafe, Milkmaid, Munch and Milkibar, said it wanted to celebrate the culture of Odisha with designs on packs representing 'Pattachitra'. "Last year, we wanted to celebrate the culture of Odisha with designs on packs representing 'Pattachitra', an art form uniquely identifiable by its vivid imagery. We wanted to encourage people to know about the art and its artisans. Our past campaigns have also shown that consumers like to collect and keep such beautiful designs,” it said.
Meanwhile, see the reactions of Netizens which followed soon after the photo of the wrapper went viral:
For those unversed, Pattachitra is an ancient Odisha-based artworks of cloth-based scroll painting. This artform is known for its intricate details as well as mythological narratives and folktales inscribed in it. It was originally created for ritual use and as souvenirs for pilgrims to Puri, as well as other temples in Odisha.
Nestle India has nine production facilities with a turnover of Rs 13,350 crore in 2021. Last year in April, Nestle India had also apologised for wrongly depicting Manipur's Keibul Lamjao National Park to be located in Meghalaya on the packaging of its KitKat chocolate after objection by authorities from the state government.
-With PTI inputs
