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Sadhus versus the Big Mac

Suparn Verma in Bombay

How will McDonald's presence affect Indian culture? The question was posed to Ajit Mata, all-India joint secretary of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad.

Mata's reply is a spin that would amaze Shane Warne. "That," he says, "is a gem of a question. But it will take me hours to answer it."

So he doesn't, and instead says, "But the main issue is that the VHP and the Bajrang Dal are starting the Sanskriti Raksha Andolan (Culture Protection Movement) all over India to clean up our culture of all Western influence. McDonald's is just the starting point. We plan to clean up the education system that teaches lies to our kids. We will stop beauty contests in colleges.

"Women are meant to be worshipped: they are mothers, today they walk exposing their bodies and they are looked upon as sexual commodities. Look at our culture under the Western influence today, look at the number of divorce cases that has gone up. The West lives by the rule 'Survival of the fittest'. Our culture says 'The entire world is your family, live and let live'."

The genesis of the entire controversy is humble. McDonald's opened its third branch at Vile Parle west, a north-western suburb of Bombay (and its ninth in India, having six in Delhi), sparking off a wave of protests. The main thrust of the protests was that McDonald's presence would harm "Indian culture".

Swad, a bar-cum-restaurant, is situated exactly above the disputed McDonald's outlet. How come no one has raised any hackles about that affecting India culture so far? Mata sidesteps the query: "People have been drinking for thousands of centuries here," he replies, "nothing new in that."

Interestingly, was not the VHP a silent spectator in the anti-McDonald's movement until the Bharatiya Janata Party was elected to power? "No," insists Mata, "we were maturing, we were developing. It doesn't make a difference if the BJP is in power or not. On the contrary, we don't want politicians, we don't discuss anything we do with them."

He then goes on to promise: "You wait and see, within six months you will see changes starting to take place in Bombay. We have asked all the sadhus from the Kumbh Mela to join us here in our agitation. In two years time, you will see a lot of changes in the country."

However, Mata is unable to give a clear picture of his agitation plans against McDonald's, apart from stating firmly: "Nothing that affects our culture will remain here. The money they earn here goes to funding cow slaughtering farmhouses in the US. We will start by educating the masses."

McDonald's Vile Parle outlet, which is still to start operations, has been facing opposition from the day it announced its intention a month ago. First, the citizens of the rather upper middle class locality -- primarily Hindu and Jain Gujaratis -- opposed the outlet on the ground that its products contained beef and pork. McDonald's India chief executive officer Amit Jatia categorically asserted that no branch in India sold beef or pork products.

The locality's citizens changed tack. They now opposed the new branch claiming it would promote non-vegetarianism (most Gujaratis, especially the Jains, are strict vegetarians) among the youth.

"In reply," says Jatia, "we pointed out to them the existence of 30 non-vegetarian joints and four "ladies bars" (where women work as waitresses) in the vicinity."

Next came the issue of swadeshi and non-swadeshi. "All our food comes from India, all our employees are Indians, all our customers are Indian, our menu caters to Indian tastes, and all the money we make is being re-invested into the business," points out Jatia, "So where does the question of swadeshi and non-swadeshi come in? We are a locally-owned and locally-run business."

Then came the issue that McDonald's outlet would hurt local business. Jatia affirms that he has the support of fellow hoteliers and restaurant owners. He adds that the Hotel Federation of India has issued a statement declaring McDonald's outlets as just food joints which do not hurt any local business.

"How can a burger compete with our samosas and kachoris and pav bhaji?" asks a perplexed Mrs Mehta, resident of Lokhandwala, Andheri. She is standing outside the jampacked Holaram Bhagwandas halwai shop, which sells Indian delicacies. Incidentally, this shop is situated bang opposite the McDonald's outlet in Lokhandwala, northwest Bombay.

"That, is precisely our point," asserts Amit Jatia, chief executive officer of McDonald's India, "Our outlet in no way hurts the local businesses in India. In fact, we are setting standards in cleanliness and hygiene."

Francis Fernandes, assistant manager of Sasural, a restaurant in Lokhandwala, agrees that his business has not been harmed. "We have our own clientele. People can't have burgers everyday, everyone seeks variety in food and eating joints. You have Chinese food someday, you have Italian food another day, and one day you eat a burger. So there is no way the opening of their outlet has affected any of the businesses here," he asserts.

In fact, Anand Rachh, proprietor of Ashirwaad, an ice-cream store in Vile Parle, actually welcomes the McDonald's branch. "They have such a limited menu, there is no way we will be affected by them opening here," he insists, adding, "I think the whole issue is politicised."

Will McDonald's work? "Only time will tell," he replies, and gives an interesting analogy, "Three years ago, when Baskin Robbins first opened their store on the Juhu-Tara Road (a nearby locality), people would stand in queue for the first 2-3 months to buy the ice-creams. Today, they have had to close shop because they were not doing much business."

Jatia is confident that the law is on his side. "We have done nothing illegal, we have fulfilled all the requirements," he says, "We simply offer you a choice to eat out at a place which has quality and hygiene."

Whether the VHP can change all that, as it has promised, remains to be seen.