On Tuesday, September 20, Television actress turned YouTuber Debina Bonnerjee posted a vlog on her popular Youtube channel Debina Decodes, the content of which was questionable to a great extent. Her video was a make-up vlog through which she gave her audience a tutorial on the Durga Puja look. But the segment of the make-up tutorial was to promote a particular make-up brand, Iba Cosmetics.

Through the sequence of “Durga Pujo” make-up, the popular YouTuber unabashedly marketed the products of Iba Cosmetics. While describing the brand and listing its benefits, Debina Bonnerjee highlighted that Iba Cosmetics was “India’s first Halal-Certified” cosmetics brand as though it was one of its key features. So here’s one question we have.

Why will anyone preparing for Durga Puja be interested in Halal certification?

Durga puja is a Hindu festival, and regardless of how desperately the liberals try to secularise it, Durga Puja, or Durga Pujo as Bonnerjee likes to put it, is and will always be a Hindu festival. We are interested in knowing why, according to Bonnerjee, a Hindu will be interested or inclined toward a cosmetic brand that conforms to Islamic doctrines.

Halal is primarily an inhumane way of slaughtering an animal per Islamic guidelines. Debina Bonnerjee goes on to claim that products of Iba Cosmetics are vegan. If no animal protein or fat is involved in the processing or formula of the cosmetic brand she is promoting, what is the need for it to be Halal certified?

Halal is a requirement dictated by Islam and followed by Muslims. We wonder if Debina Bonnerjee is trying to gain views from Arabic, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi subscribers with her “Durga Puja look” using “Halal-certified” cosmetics. What benefit does it have for the Hindus? None.

• The Halal economy is one of the booming industries that operate on the principle of discrimination against every non-Muslim.
  
• Every time you buy a halal-certified product, an amount of your purchase goes to the board that gives the Halal-Certification, which in turn flows into the hands of the Islamic world.
  
• Though Halal was initially a prerequisite for meat and meat products to grab a share of every purchase made by Bharatiyas, the halal economy spread its tentacles on spices, processed food items, and, now even cosmetics.
  
• Companies know Muslims will not be willing to buy anything without the Halal certification, and a majority of Hindus are not concerned about their religious practices. Hence, they submit to the Islamic doctrine and make Halal-certified available.

Here are some shocking statements about the Halal economy:

Consumers who buy halal products could be funding Islamist extremism, an Abbott government backbencher claims.

In an opinion article titled Terror in the Tucker Box, Nationals MP George Christensen questions whether shoppers who buy goods with the halal logo are funding a push for Sharia law – or even backing terrorists. – The Guardian.

The leading “Halal Certification” body in the world has been funding Islamic radical groups since 2012, an investigation by Middle East Forum has revealed. In a report by JM Phelps and Sam Westrop of the Islamist Watch, a project of the Middle East Forum, the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America (IFANCA) has handed out huge amounts of money to prominent Islamist organizations that are linked to terror groups such as Jamaat-e-Islamia, Hamas and Al-Qaeda. – The Daily Guardian.

HinduPost had highlighted how one could be unknowingly contributing to the Halal economy and indirectly funding terrorism. And then Hindus have celebrities and influencers that are Hindu-in-Name-Only (HINO) who are influencing their followers to spend their money to finance Islamist extremism and terror activities. Their entire focus is on how much money they can make.

Such influencers can be defined as ignorant and greedy who are willing to promote any idea, product, or service regardless of how detrimental it is for the Hindu society and interest as long as they are getting a fat paycheck for their “services”.

Coming back to Debina Bonnerjee, after struggling for years in Mumbai, the actress rose to prominence and found enormous success by portraying the character of Mata Sita in the 2008 serial Ramayan. And today, after gaining fame, money, and a vast audience, she is promoting Halal-certified cosmetics to Hindus gearing up for Durga Puja. The irony practically writes itself.

While we are at it, let’s also discuss another Television actress-turned-YouTuber, Dipika Kakkar, aka Faiza. Dipika became a household name after portraying the title character in the mega TV series “Sasural Simar Ka”. In 2018, she married co-actor Shoaib Ibrahim, converted to Islam, and became Faiza. In the past four years, Faiza has completely transformed into an ardent and devout Muslima, abandoning her birth religion. Her vlogs suggest that she puts added effort into promoting Islamic culture through language, food, clothes, and social customs.

The stark difference between the two women, one promoting Islam at every step and the other utterly indifferent to the interest of her community, is baffling at so many levels.