No surprise, 'India's Ivanka' just as dim a lightbulb as Trump
Whatever the United States of America may be undergoing right now, some of us Indians are surely expressing our love for "Brand Trump" in ways only we can come up with. India woke up today to the shock therapy of a full cover page advertisemnt in the Times of India "congratulating" the POETUS, whose oath-taking ceremony is due in a few hours.
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| Devita Saraf with Donald Trump in the TOI cover page ad. [Photo: TOI] |
Devita Saraf, the CEO of Vu Televisions, a Mumbai-based company, was seen in the ad posing with President-Elect Trump, with the photocaption, "Congratulations, Mr. President!" Trump in his trademark thumbs up pose was seen standing next to Saraf, while Saraf's biography in bullet points was printed in the bottom of the page.
Even in the category of shameless self-promotion, this "advertisement" could only scrape the bottom of the crudeness barrel, while trying to pass off its attempt to brand Saraf as a cool, suave, globalised CEO.
Congratulations @realDonaldTrump , I'm inspired by your self-belief & commitment to leadership. Thank you for calling me "India's Ivanka" ???? pic.twitter.com/1vt1Ba7oJY
— Devita Saraf (@DevitaSaraf) January 20, 2017
Of course, the move jangled India's already frayed nerves. Not only that, Saraf tweeted out the image of the TOI cover page, adding the bit that Trump had called her "India's Ivanka" and she simply couldn't not flaunt it enough.
Twitterati was naturally repulsed and some made it known in no uncertain terms. While some called out Saraf's opportunism to pose with a man who has divided not just America but in fact the whole world with his crass sexism and racism, despite calling herself a "feminist entrepreneur", others simply expressed disparagement.
What @vijayshekhar and @reliancejio did with our PM, @DevitaSaraf did that to Trump. pic.twitter.com/6XAvQM5uE5
— लाट साहेब !!! (@noupdates) January 20, 2017
India is good at giving sermons to others-Need to look at their PM first before trolling on @DevitaSaraf's choice 2 stand w America's choice https://t.co/LYqqZZ0ft0
— Ashok Swain (@ashoswai) January 20, 2017
A very effective ad. Has convinced me to never buy #VuTelevision. And that book @DevitaSaraf is holding...so subtle. pic.twitter.com/AXOyYcnPDO
— kalpana nair (@kalpananair) January 20, 2017
You really paid for this shit to promote yourself @DevitaSaraf ? You definitely need a better team managing your personal branding ! https://t.co/SJEK1HyZuH
— Ved Agarwal (@VedAgarwal) January 20, 2017
It must be mentioned that Saraf takes her profession very seriously and her Twitter bio says she has been dubbed a "Model CEO" by none other than Forbes magazine, and that she has been put in the list of the youngest global movers and shakers, who was "beaten by Beyonce only by three months".
When u open d TOI & see dis, it jst makes ur morning! So proud of u @DevitaSaraf Wish u more power babes ❤ #Inspired pic.twitter.com/1FoG4ezFI1
— Ipsita Dasgupta (@I_Ipsita) January 20, 2017
Really True entrepreneurship is all about building relationships. All the best & keep rocking. Devita Saraf@DevitaSaraf pic.twitter.com/tUTWhg1ISI
— Kanchan Negi (@coool_kashish) January 20, 2017
Devita Saraf shows the Power of Indian Women..All the Best for your ventures and keep inspiring everyone @DevitaSaraf @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/JZE5nqYvcJ
— Pooja (@Pooja__G) January 20, 2017
Yet, that's not all. Saraf's self-satisfaction at being called "India's Ivanka" has not gone unnoticed and duly criticised on social media. Donald Trump had earlier said that "were Ivanka not [his] daughter, he'd date her". Trump's disgustingly sexist lens to look at a woman, any woman, even his own daughter, as sum of a set of highly questionable bodily attributes, is perfectly indicative of his crude misogynist worldview.
However, Saraf's one-stop answer to all the misgivings is: "He's the President." Claarly, in Saraf's eyes, being elected president of the USA, despite the highly controversial propping-up that he received from Russian president Vladimir Putin, absolves Donald Trump of everything. So forgotten is Trump's "Grab them by the pu**y" remark, and his miserable attempt to pass it off as mere "locker-room banter".
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| Devita Saraf's Twitter page. [Photo: Screengrab] |
Devita Saraf is the daughter of Raj Saraf, the owner of Zenith Computers, and she started Vu Televisions in 2006. She has been parading her "feminist credentials", reportedly saying in an interview: “I don’t think you need to become a man to show you have power. I have been taken seriously as a leader and entrepreneur in a male-dominated industry while being unapologetically feminine.”
In addition, her top tweet says: "Never underestimate us Indian women. Remember, you'll get tired of knocking us down long before we get tired of getting back up!"
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| Devita Saraf has acted as the 'brand ambassador'of Vu Television herself. [Photo: Google] |
Meanwhile, even as Saraf spends a hefty amount to plaster herself with Donald Trump on the cover of the world's largest selling English language daily, many are protesting in extremely innovative ways.
This is how you crash an unveiling ceremony for a Donald Trump wax sculpture. pic.twitter.com/OWecQGiTTB
— AJ+ (@ajplus) January 19, 2017
A member of the feminist group Femen just lodged her protest by baring her chest and trying grab the pu**ygrabber-in-chief's genitals in the wax museum statue at Madame Tussauds.
Thank you for a wonderful evening in Washington, D.C. #Inauguration pic.twitter.com/a6xpFQTHj5
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2017
Meanwhile, Donald Trump cannot just stop tweeting about himself. Well, what the hell, this is indeed his moment, if there had to be any.
Thank you for joining us at the Lincoln Memorial tonight- a very special evening! Together, we are going to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! pic.twitter.com/5d774OCx5o
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2017