Eyewear company Lenskart, on Thursday, April 16, came under fire for a ‘staff uniform and grooming guide’ that banned the tilak and bindi while allowing the hijab and turbans.
Many have slammed the dress code, pointing to “selective shame toward Hindu symbols while most of their customers and employees are Hindu”. Shefali Vaidya, an author and media personality based in Pune, posted about the dress code on April 15, asking Lenskart to clarify on the “religious asymmetry.”
Comments on the post are bashing Lenskart for having “problems only with Hindus culture.” “Care to explain how is bindi a risk ?? How can sacred thread be a threat or risk ?? Aren’t you ashamed at all of how you are hurting Sanatan Dharma ?? Hope you apologise to your Hindu employees,” said one post on X.
“Are we living in India or Pakistan? Very soon Lenskart and all companies will ask you to become Muslim to get job. @HMOIndia (Home Minister of India) is silent on this to allow? Cancel the licence. Sindoor is Religious but not Hijab.” stated another X user.
Shefali later shared a link to a document titled “Lenskart Style Guide Version 11 (1)- 2nd Feb” that details all restrictions on an employee’s dress code. Page 11 of the document is the one that has specifically enraged the public.
Among other things, the rules ban tilak, bindi, visible tattoos, caps and hats. They state specific guidelines for turbans and hijab, discouraging head coverings in any colour other than black. Henna is also allowed only with prior approval and for a maximum of 10 days, while wedding chura (bangles) are allowed for three months.
Employees are also asked to put on a ‘minimal Sindoor’ which does not fall on the forehead, and religious threads (kalwa) are allowed only one day after a pooja.
Inaccurate, says Lenskart founder
Responding to the uproar, Lenskart founder Peyush Bansal stated that the viral dress code was an “inaccurate policy document” and does not reflect present guidelines.
He said that the company’s grooming policy has “evolved over the years” and “outdated versions do not represent who we are today”
“We apologise for the confusion and concern this situation has caused. We, as a company, continue to learn and build. Any lapses in our language or policies have and will continue to be addressed. We have thousands of team members across Bharat who wear their faith and culture proudly every day at our stores. They are Lenskart. Lenskart was built in Bharat, by Indians, for Indians. Every symbol and every tradition our people carry is a part of who we are as a company. I will never let that be compromised,” he stated in a post on X.
However, a community post below challenges Bansal’s claim of “inaccurate document”, saying that the document in question bears company branding/logos and that Lenskart has not released any updated policy document since.
Bansal then went on to give more clarification, saying that the document was an “outdated internal training document” and not the HR policy.
“That said, it contained an incorrect line about bindi/tilak that should never have been written and does not reflect our values or actual practice. When we discovered this on February 17, well before this became a public conversation, we immediately removed it. But I should have caught this earlier. As Founder and CEO, the responsibility for such lapses is mine. I have asked my team to bring all such materials under stricter review, and I will personally ensure this is addressed going forward. We are also looking into how this found its way into our training content,” he said in a different X post.
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