Indian Hospitality chain OYO rooms headed by Ritesh Agarwal has sparked controversy after a recent advertisement led to an outrage on social media. Under the promotional campaign of OYO rooms, a half-page advertisement was published in a Hindi newspaper which faced severe backlash, for allegedly hurting religious sentiments.
The featured advertisement read, “Bhagwan har jagah hai (God is everywhere)…Aur OYO bhi (And so is OYO). The tagline didn’t go down well with some religious groups, about the omnipresence of God and the widespread presence of OYO’s hospitality. The groups claimed it as an insult to their faith.
Following the advertisement’s reach, several religious groups and social media users demanded an immediate apology from the company for hurting the religious sentiments. With several users calling for a boycott, with a trending hashtag #BoycottOYO.
One of the users wrote, “OYO has attacked Hindu faith! How dare they compare themselves to God? Apologize immediately and remove this ridiculous ad, or OYO will face protests in every city!”
The controversy intensified ahead. Further, what led to the outrage is the logo of OYO. Religious groups pointed on the logo’s design which was revealed in an interview by Ritesh Agarwal to be inspired from Lord Jagannath. He said that the two O’s represent the deity’s eyes and the Y was his nose. This has fueled anger among the people, with some criticizing the use of sacred imagery for commercial purposes as inappropriate and disrespectful. The users are asking OYO to issue a clarification and reconsider its branding strategy.
The controversy came after OYO’s attempts to reestablish itself as a “family friendly chain.” OYO has been known for young travelers and unmarried couples, but now the policy has been revised for the families. Based on religious customs and beliefs, it now refuses bookings to unmarried couples in some regions.
This will surely affect its branding further and might impact the customer perception as well. OYO responded on its social media handle posting that it didn't mean to hurt any religious sentiments. The post read-
— OYO (@oyorooms) February 21, 2025
