Actress Deepika Padukone has found herself in the middle of a raging debate for wearing an abaya — an outfit generally associated with Muslim women — in an Abu Dhabi tourism advertisement.
The ad, also featuring Deepika’s husband Ranveer Singh, has left the internet divided, with some netizens criticising her choice of outfit and many coming out in her support.
In the ad, the couple, who were appointed as the brand ambassador of Experience Abu Dhabi, offer a glimpse of various tourist destinations in the country. Immersing herself in Arabian culture, Deepika sports a brown abaya and walks inside a mosque with her husband Ranveer Singh in the video.
Sharing a picture of Deepika wearing Indian ethnic clothes while visiting temples, a fan wrote on X, “This is Deepika Padukone when she has gone to temples. She has always been respectful toward the culture of India. In the tourism commercial she is wearing what is appropriate for that culture. You should be proud of someone who can go to any country and be respectful.”
Several netizens trolled the actress, accusing her of demeaning Indian culture in the ad.
One of them recalled the popular advertisement where Deepika famously said, “to wear a bindi or not, my choice”, reminding everyone that “it’s a choice except when tradition, customs, or advertisers demand otherwise”.
“India has many beautiful architectural monuments too...hey how about promoting that?” one of them said on Instagram. “Bindi is a choice, abaya is mandatory,” another commented.
As the debate gained momentum, many fans of Deepika came out in her support.
“Deepika Padukone is the only actress who looks so graceful in both Hindu and Muslim attire,” wrote another fan.
Another tweet read, “Another controversy. Same lameass people criticising her because she's successful. Stay pressed, the Indian cinema will forever be lucky to have an actor like Deepika Padukone. No hate train can ever make me hate you.”
“I don’t know why people are crying over this picture. Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone both are actors and they are doing their work. Some people just hate for no reason,” an X user shared to support the actress.
Recently, Deepika stepped out of filmmaker Sandeep Reddy Vanga's action drama Spirit after reportedly demanding to work for eight hours a day. Weeks later, she was dropped from the Kalki 2898 AD sequel.
According to media reports, she was replaced by Triptii Dimri in Spirit due to disagreements over remuneration.