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'Hitler' clothing store stirs anger in India [W:25]

Wake

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The owner of an Indian clothing store said Wednesday that he would only change its name from "Hitler" if he was compensated for re-branding costs, amid a growing row over the new shop. The outlet, which sells Western men's wear, opened 10 days ago in Ahmedabad city in the western state of Gujarat with "Hitler" written in big letters over the front and with a Nazi swastika as the dot on the "i". "I will change it (the name) if people want to compensate me for the money we have spent -- the logo, the hoarding, the business cards, the brand," Rajesh Shah told AFP. He put the total costs at about 150,000 rupees ($2,700). Shah insisted that until the store opened he did not know who Adolf Hitler was and that Hitler was a nickname given to the grandfather of his store partner because "he was very strict".

"I didn't know how much the name would disturb people," he told AFP by telephone from Ahmedabad. "It was only when the store opened I learnt Hitler had killed six million people."

'Hitler' clothing store stirs anger in India - Yahoo! News

...of course he didn't know. :roll:

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If he didn't know why is there a swastika?
 
He probably did this knowingly in hopes that people would pay him the $2,700.
 
You can't possibly have Hitler and a red swastika with a black background and not know what those two mean. There are certain dictatorships you can use for fashion and some you can't. Imperial China, Napoleonic France and even Roman symbols make great fashion items because nobody alive today lived under those times. Even Communist Russia symbols have been incorporated into fashion as ironically as it sounds. Nazi Germany however has a special place though. Nobody seems to want to be associated with it in the fashion world. Sure, certain aesthetics can be taken from it because the Nazis DID have an impact on the fashion world but to outright CLAIM Nazi symbols is unthinkable for most in Western fashion.

The way I see it, this guy has a red Swastika, Hitler in white and a black background to his business cards. All predominant colors in Nazi attire. This to me shows he did some research for his brand. What? He skipped the whole Holocaust part?
 
Well to be fair the swastika is a symbol used by the Hindus and other religions and has been around for thousands of years.

Does this mean that religion can change due to negative connotations? Hmmm...
 
Well to be fair the swastika is a symbol used by the Hindus and other religions and has been around for thousands of years.

It only just so happens to appear on a store called Hitler?
 
Well to be fair the swastika is a symbol used by the Hindus and other religions and has been around for thousands of years.

But iirc when the Hindus used it, wasn't it just a tad different? The symbol was rotated so that the edge of one of those 4 "L" parts was flat on the ground.
 
Well to be fair the swastika is a symbol used by the Hindus and other religions and has been around for thousands of years.

Yeah, but the Hindu swastika is oriented in the opposite direction.
 
Sorry, should have looked at the photos. My apologies.
 
MISTAKE: Wake was right, the correct swastika is flat. Only the Hindus would have it inverted, though.
 
He did it on purpose. He's going to make mad bank on the controversy.
 
He did it on purpose. He's going to make mad bank on the controversy.

I don't know man. Nazism is a tough fashion sell. The most I've ever seen is the Iron Cross and Storm Troopers. One is used here and there on leather jackets, the other is either a running joke or a nerd niche. Neither has broken out into mainstream fashion.
 
I don't know man. Nazism is a tough fashion sell. The most I've ever seen is the Iron Cross and Storm Troopers. One is used here and there on leather jackets, the other is either a running joke or a nerd niche. Neither has broken out into mainstream fashion.

Iron Cross is carryover from 19th century.
 
Well to be fair the swastika is a symbol used by the Hindus and other religions and has been around for thousands of years.

True, however, you have to take a look at the direction the arms of the swastika point.

The swastika that the Native Americans used was the Big Dipper in four different directions ... opposite of the Nazi swastika.

A L
 
I take a look at this guy. He is in business to make a profit. He chose a theme that would garner attention....publicity that would have cost him a great deal of money.....Hence he is full of baloney and he is one smart cookie!!!!
 
India’s Jewish community condemn 'Hitler’ clothes shop

[h=2]India’s Jewish community have denounced a shopkeeper who opened a new clothes shop called 'Hitler’ and called on him to rename it.[/h]
hitler_2322522b.jpg


--snip--

Rajesh Shah claimed he had not named his store after the most reviled dictator in modern history but his partner’s grandfather who was known as 'Hitler’ for his strict manner.



He had only become aware of the Nazi leader after searching the name on the internet. But critics say his use of the German National Socialists’ Swastika symbol on his 'Hitler’ shop sign contradicts his claim and said they believe he is cashing in on the late Fuhrer’s curious popularity in India.



The Nazi Swastika symbol was taken from Hindu culture in which it is regarded as an auspicious sign. Mein Kampf, in which Hitler set out his racist theories, remains a bestseller in India where more than 10,000 copies are sold each year to students.



--snip--

10,000 copies of Mein Kampf sold in India each year? That just staggers the mind. You also have to ask why it is bought in such numbers.

In the case of the shop - I think the guy is doing a "Benneton" and deliberately courting controversy to raise the profile of his shop. The Swastika / Svastika originates in India so does not carry the same connotations that it does in the West however going a step further and naming his shop Hitler raises serious questions -

He's demanding the equivalent of £500 to rebrand his shop however - I'd happily contribute towards that.

Link
 
Re: India’s Jewish community condemn 'Hitler’ clothes shop

10,000 copies of Mein Kampf sold in India each year? That just staggers the mind. You also have to ask why it is bought in such numbers.

In the case of the shop - I think the guy is doing a "Benneton" and deliberately courting controversy to raise the profile of his shop. The Swastika / Svastika originates in India so does not carry the same connotations that it does in the West however going a step further and naming his shop Hitler raises serious questions -

He's demanding the equivalent of £500 to rebrand his shop however - I'd happily contribute towards that.

Link

It never ceases to amaze the depths some people go too, to make money. I did a quick search on how well Mein Kampf sell in that region, and it seems Bangladesh street vendors sell a few

"Adolf Hitler's autobiography manifesto Mein Kampf is selling as well as Dan Brown's latest novel, The Lost Symbol" (....)

"I think it's because many people have seen Hitler in films and want to know more about him." (....)

BBC News - Mein Kampf a hit on Dhaka streets

Paul
 
Re: India’s Jewish community condemn 'Hitler’ clothes shop

-- I did a quick search on how well Mein Kampf sell in that region, and it seems Bangladesh street vendors sell a few --

Your link clarifies it for me. I was expecting the original or reprint in hardback by an established publisher whereas what the street vendors are selling is a photocopy. Even then - my Western sensibilities find the idea of "Mein Kampf" being really popular strange. I suppose in some ways you might have educated westerners buying books up about infamous Asian tyrants and dictators that people there would be horrified to own.

Che Gueverra's T-Shirt for example - his image remains popular with many affluent teenagers and young people who know little about him whereas in the countries immediately affected he would be a highly divisive figure.
 
Re: India’s Jewish community condemn 'Hitler’ clothes shop

Why is it that when you put the name "Hitler" with a swastika, everybody assumes it's about Nazism?....

Must be that political correctness that makes you think KKK just because a bunch of white guys want to have a meeting without black people around so they can burn a cross.
 
I'm honestly not sure what to think of this. Maybe you guys condemning him are correct, but I'm trying to think about this from the perspective of an Indian guy. It's possible that he didn't have much education, so he didn't know very much about world history. The slang term "hitler" is popular in many parts of the world to describe a very strict person. It's possible that he only knew Hitler from that term, and knew nothing at all about the Holocaust.

Hatuey said:
There are certain dictatorships you can use for fashion and some you can't. Imperial China, Napoleonic France and even Roman symbols make great fashion items because nobody alive today lived under those times. Even Communist Russia symbols have been incorporated into fashion as ironically as it sounds. Nazi Germany however has a special place though.

I agree, but that's looking at it from a Westerner's perspective. Hitler didn't really have much of an impact on India. I would compare how we Americans would feel about a store named after some brutal dictator who was relatively obscure to Americans. Would it provoke mass outrage if an American named a store "Mugabe" or "Suharto" or "Fujimori"? Probably not.

That's not to completely defend this guy...it's fully possible that he knew perfectly well what he was doing. But I just don't find his story completely implausible at first glance, without more facts.
 
True, however, you have to take a look at the direction the arms of the swastika point.

The swastika that the Native Americans used was the Big Dipper in four different directions ... opposite of the Nazi swastika.

A L

Native Americans?

I also think Hindu's have 2 swastikas one where the arms point in the same direction as the Nazi one and one opposite. The main difference is the rotation of the nazi one (like a diamond suit on a playing card) whereas the 2 hindu swastikas are square to the horizon.

Oh, and I accidentally duplicated the thread elsewhere.
 
Moderator's Warning:
Duplicate threads merged
 
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