CHICAGO: A large number of Indian Americans across USA and world over are upset over the cover of January one international edition of American business magazine Fortune which juxtaposes the image of Amazon.com President Jeffrey P. Bezos in the likeness of Lord Vishnu. They claim that it trivializes their venerated deity.
The story is about Amazon’s ambitions to succeed in India, and features the cover line ‘Amazon invades India’.Rajan Zed, president of Universal Society of Hinduism in Nevada and Madhu Patel, president of NRI Press Club in Chicago observed that Lord Vishnu is a highly revered major deity in Hinduism meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to be used indecorously or thrown around loosely in reimagined versions for dramatic effects.
How a mortal could be depicted as Lord Vishnu, who is the director of our destinies, ask Indian community activists. They added that inappropriate usage of Hinduism concepts and symbols for pushing selfish agenda or mercantile greed was not okay.
Rajan, calling it an unnecessary dragging of a Hindu deity to prove their point of view, urged Fortune to publish a disclaimer about this on its website and the next issue with proper explanation of Lord Vishnu and Hinduism; in addition to a formal signed apology by Time Inc. Chairman Joseph A. Ripp; Fortune Publisher Eric Danetz, Editor Alan Murray, Creative Director Michael Lawton and Art Director Michael Solita.
The purpose of Fortune in this case may not be to denigrate Hinduism, but a casual flirting like this sometimes resulted in pillaging serious spiritual doctrines and revered symbols and hurting the devotees, Rajan said. Humor was a part and parcel of Hindu society but there were certain convictions in every tradition, which were venerable and not meant to be taken lightly.
This Fortune cover page is headlined as “Amazon Invades India” (How Jeff Bezos is conquering the next ‘trillion-dollar market’) and created by Sydney (Australia) based illustrator Nigel Buchanan; whose clients include The Wall Street Journal, MTV, The New York Times, etc.
Lord Vishnu is “preserver” in the Hindu triad with Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva as the aspect of the Supreme. He has ten incarnations to establish dharma (divine law). Moksha (liberation) is the ultimate goal of Hinduism. There are about three million Hindus in USA.
Fortune Magazine, launched in 1930 and published from New York by Time Inc., claims to be “a global leader in business journalism with a worldwide circulation of more than 1 million and a readership of nearly 5 million” and having “the highest concentration of affluent and influential business decision-makers vs. the competition”. It comes out 18 times a year. Time Inc.
claims to be “one of the largest branded media companies in the world reaching more than 120 million people each month across multiple platforms”.
Surendra Ullal
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