Haldiram's trends on Twitter after row over 'Urdu' on snack packet

Reactions on Twitter varied from calling the boycott a 'joke' to calling for a ban on Urdu in India

Popular snack maker Haldiram's was trending across Twitter after it landed in a row over its Navratri-themed snack using 'Urdu' on the packet.

In a video which has gone viral, a TV reporter can be seen repeatedly questioning a Haldiram's store staff over the language on the pack, which she identifies as Urdu, and questions why Hindi or English are not on the packet - despite the staffer repeatedly telling her that it is in fact present.

The reporter alleges that Haldiram's is using Urdu as a means to hide facts about the product - labelled as vegetarian - asking if the company is using animal fat to produce the fasting snack.

The video, which was shared by multiple Twitter handles, has raked up over 15,000 likes and several thousand retweets, and left Twitter users divided on the product - while clarifying that the language is, in fact, Arabic and not Urdu.

One user put up a thread questioning the use of Arabic in a product by a company that "targets" the Hindu consumer with its snack.

Another Twitter user, specifically mentioning the chairman of the news channel, said those who boycott Haldiram's over use of Urdu should also boycott the Indian rupee as the language is used in currency notes.

Another user said that "a pure veg brand with Haldi and Ram in its brand identity now needs to prove its Hinduism/Vegetarianism and Hindu identity to these jokers," quoting a video by the chairman of the news channel in which he alleges that the company "betrayed" Hindu religion.

Another user demanded a ban on Urdu in India, citing how the Pakistani currency does not use Hindi on it.