What began as a festive marketing campaign for a jewellery brand has spiralled into one of the more heated public conversations in recent weeks about women's clothing and cultural expectations. Actress Kriti Sanon's Raksha Bandhan advertisement for jewellery label GIVA came under fire after she was seen celebrating the festival by tying a rakhi to her brother - and to her pet dog - while wearing an Indo-Western outfit that a section of social media users deemed inappropriate for the occasion.
The controversy escalated quickly when actress-turned-politician Kangana Ranaut joined the conversation, taking to Instagram to question Kriti's styling choice directly. Ranaut wrote that despite the wide range of clothing options available, from lehengas to salwar kameez, the actress had chosen an outfit she likened to a "bikini," calling the advertisement "intentionally creepy." The remark added considerable fuel to an already growing online debate, with the backlash prompting GIVA to eventually pull the campaign from all its platforms.
Kriti did not stay silent amid the mounting criticism. In a series of Instagram Stories, she pushed back against the idea that a woman's clothing should determine how seriously she honours her culture or traditions. She wrote that the essence of festivals lies not in what one wears but in the emotions and meaning behind the tradition, and questioned more broadly when society would stop dictating what women should or shouldn't wear - pointing out that ethnic fashion itself has evolved considerably over the years.
Raghu Ram Enters The Conversation
The controversy has now drawn a fresh voice into the debate: former "Roadies" judge Raghu Ram. Sharing a video addressing the row, Raghu questioned the very premise of the outrage, noting that the ad simply depicted a sister tying a rakhi to her brother - a scene he found nothing objectionable about. "Kriti Sanon's Rakhi ad caused a controversy. It's gone, perhaps, and will continue to do so. Something new will come along that will hurt us. But I have two questions I want to talk to you about," he said.
He went on to directly challenge the reasoning often used to justify criticism of women's clothing. "I have two problems. Why is there a problem with girls wearing less clothing, and what exactly is the problem? Don't say that girls are raped and exploited later. This is a cheap, wrong, and criminal mindset," Raghu said, rejecting the common argument that links a woman's attire to her safety or the conduct of others.
He also questioned whether men hold any inherent authority to dictate women's clothing choices, referencing a controversial remark previously made by a politician comparing women to "a box of sweets" that attracts "flies" if left uncovered. "What kind of blessing do other men have that they can tell girls what they should wear?" Raghu asked, dismissing the comparison as reductive and offensive.
Why It Matters: A Recurring Cultural Flashpoint
The episode is far from an isolated incident. Debates over what women - particularly public figures - should or shouldn't wear during religious or cultural occasions resurface with striking regularity in India, often triggering polarised reactions that split along generational and ideological lines. Celebrities' choices in advertisements are frequently treated as proxies for larger conversations about tradition, modesty, and personal autonomy, with brands sometimes bearing the commercial brunt of public backlash, as GIVA did here by withdrawing the campaign entirely.
Raghu Ram's intervention adds a notable voice to a conversation that has, until now, largely played out between Kriti's defenders and critics like Kangana Ranaut. His comments reflect a broader pushback against victim-blaming narratives that tie clothing choices to safety or morality - a discourse that continues to resurface each time a public figure's outfit becomes a talking point.
The Bigger Picture
As the debate continues to circulate online, the incident underscores how quickly a routine festive brand campaign can become a flashpoint for much larger societal arguments about gender, autonomy, and cultural expectations - conversations that, as Raghu Ram himself noted, tend to fade only to resurface with the next controversy.
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