MAM
Zomato founder calls out ‘intolerance’ on social media after language row
MUMBAI: Founder of online food delivery platform Zomato, Deepinder Goyal has called out the rise of ‘intolerance’ among the social media users, after the platform found itself in the eye of another Twitter storm early this week.
“An ignorant mistake by someone in a support centre of a food delivery company became a national issue. The level of tolerance and chill in our country needs to be way higher than it is nowadays. Who’s to be blamed here?” Goyal tweeted.
An ignorant mistake by someone in a support centre of a food delivery company became a national issue. The level of tolerance and chill in our country needs to be way higher than it is nowadays. Who’s to be blamed here?
— Deepinder Goyal (@deepigoyal) October 19, 2021
The issue arose after a customer from Tamil Nadu tweeted a screenshot of a chat he had with one of the customer care executives. The complaint was related to a missing food item in the order. According to the customer, the employee told him, that the amount cannot be refunded and apparently schooled him for not knowing Hindi while discussing the order detail. “Tagged me a liar as she didn’t know Tamil,” he further accused, tagging the app with the words, “Not the way you talk to a customer. @zomatocare”
The incident soon spiralled into a trending topic on social media, with users tweeting #Reject_Zomato and criticising Zomato, for the employee’s reference to Hindi as “the national language of the country.” Some local politicians also joined in the company’s critique, leading to a knee-jerk reaction from Zomato.
The company soon issued a public apology and announced the termination of the woman employee for “negligence towards our diverse culture”, highlighting that it understands that food and language are core to any culture and Zomato takes both of them seriously.
However, the company reversed its decision a day later and reinstated the employee. “This alone is not something she should have been fired for. This is easily something she can learn and do better about going forward,” tweeted Goyal, adding that the call centre agents are young people, who are at the start of their learning curves and careers. “They are not experts on languages and regional sentiments. Nor am I, btw.”
The Zomato founder also took the opportunity to express his concern over the rising intolerance on social media, and shared a word of advice to Twitterati: “Having said that, we should all tolerate each other’s imperfections. And appreciate each other’s language and regional sentiments.”, adding, “We are all the same, as much as we are different.”
The case is part of a series of incidents in the recent past, wherein brands and advertising agencies have been targeted by overzealous social media in the country. Recently FabIndia came under fire for an ad it tweeted regarding its latest festive collection titled ‘Jashn-e-riwaaz’. The tweet was later taken down after a vitriolic campaign was run against the brand by some self-proclaimed groups for using Urdu words for a Diwali collection.
Earlier fashion e-comm, Nykaa has also came under fire on social media for its online Navratri offers on condoms and lubes. Ed-tech platform Unacademy was also trolled recently for a skit that some social media users termed as “Anti-Hindu”. Not long before, ethnic wear brand Mohey came under attack on social media for a Wedding ad featuring its brand ambassador Alia Bhatt.
MAM
Ad:tech honours 2026: Full list of winners announced
Expanded awards spotlight winners across 22 categories as industry doubles down on intelligent automation
NEW DELHI: Marketing’s tech elite took the spotlight as the ad:tech honours 2026 returned with a sharper focus on AI, data and immersive media, signalling how deeply technology now underpins brand strategy. Held at Yashobhoomi on March 17, the second edition drew industry leaders to celebrate innovation that is reshaping engagement and performance.
Presented with the International Advertising Association India chapter and new partner Huella, the awards expanded from 8 to 22 categories, tracking the rapid convergence of creativity, automation and analytics.
The winners’ list reads like a snapshot of marketing’s future. In affiliate and partner marketing, Lyxel & Flamingo – Boat and Paytm Ads – Giva took silver. Mobavenue Media Private Limited struck gold in AI-driven dynamic creative optimisation, alongside a silver for Laqshya Media Limited.
Creative AI collaboration saw Rediffusion Brand Solutions Private Limited win gold, with Saltinc Consulting Private Limited securing silver. Laqshya Media Limited continued its strong run, taking gold in AI conversation agents and adding multiple wins across categories, including silver in GenAI-led creative and both gold and silver in interactive DOOH campaigns for Tanishq and Tata Coffee.
Predictive AI honours went to Strong Metrics and Tyroo, both silver, while Orient Bell Limited picked up silver in immersive retail tech. In GenAI-led creative, Laqshya Media Limited, Salt – Kotak and Sumimoto each secured silver, reflecting the crowded race in generative creativity.
Publicis bagged silver in influencer management and gold in performance marketing, where it shared the stage with Arm Worldwide and The Trade Desk, both silver. Glad U Came Private Limited stood out with gold in influencer measurement and analytics.
Marketing automation saw CereOne Media Pvt. Ltd. and Globale Media win silver, while ADMOTT Private Limited claimed silver in OTT innovation.
Programmatic media categories highlighted the shift to advanced targeting and connected screens. Mobavenue Media Private Limited clinched gold in connected TV advertising, with Animmoov Digital Media Pvt Ltd – Asus and Lyxel and Flamingo taking silver. Cheggout Services Private Limited won silver in retail media advertising, while Paytm Ads – Versuni secured gold.
On social platforms, Vayner Media India took gold in community and UGC engagement, with Under 25 – Oppo winning silver. Segumento rounded off the list with silver in the innovation category.
Jaswant Singh, country managing director at ad:tech India, underscored the momentum, saying generative AI and data-driven decision-making are now central to marketing impact. Neena Dasgupta, IAA mancom member and chief executive and founder at The Salt Inc Consulting, added that the awards celebrate not just technology, but “the people, the creativity, and the relentless effort behind it.”
Backed by Comexposium Group, ad:tech New Delhi has long tracked digital disruption. Now, with the honours, it is rewarding those who are not just adapting to change but engineering it.
In an industry racing towards automation, the message from 2026 is unmistakable. The future of marketing will be written not just in ideas, but in algorithms.
