Bindi-hijab row refuses to die down despite CEO Piyush Bansal clarifications

Calls to boycott eyewear brand Lenskart are intensifying over its grooming code, which detailed instructions on the office dress code for employees and CEO Peyush Bansal's clarifications. The leaked document had triggered a massive controversy after people highlighted that it didn't approve of bindi and tilak at the workplace but allowed hijab.

As the controversy snowballed, the founder and CEO of Lenskart, Peyush Bansal, issued two clarifications. Firstly, he said that the policy document was "inaccurate" and didn't reflect the company's "present guidelines". Hours later on April 16, Bansal said, the viral document was "an outdated training note" and was "not the company's HR policy", admitting it wrongly mentioned bindi/tilak, which was removed later.

Even a few days after the two clarifications, public anger and outrage have refused to die down. Instead, questions over consistency and credibility are now being raised by several journalists and activists on social media.

Now, people are demanding Lenskart and CEO Peyush Bansal to apologise, and Indians to boycott the eyewear brand for being "anti-Hindu". A person on social media posted a video of smashing his Lenskart eyewear with his Kolkapuri Chappal, while another person was seen getting into a Lenskart store and dumping their pair of glasses into the dustbin inside.

Author-journalist Shefali Vaidya claimed that she had "irrefutable proof that Lenskart CEO Peyush Bansal was lying", referring to the latter's statement that "the grooming code that said no Bindi was outdated".

"I have proof of a video audit with the date 08/04/2026 where an employee was given a low rating for wearing a bindi. Lenskart is a publicly listed company that has to follow SEBI guidelines, not Bansal's private enterprise, and they are violating Article 15 of the Indian constitution," Vaidya wrote on X, tagging Supreme Court lawyers, Vishnu Shankar Jain and Mahesh Jethmalani.

Indian Navy veteran and author Harinder Sikka on X said, "Lenskart's actions appear discriminatory and contemptuous of the law".

Meanwhile, New Delhi-based financial and tax advisor Renuka Jain on X said, "All Hindus boycott Lenskart".

WHAT LENSKART DRESS CODE SAID ON BINDI, TILAK, HIJAB? WHAT DID CEO PEYUSH BANSAL SAY?

The controversy erupted earlier this week when an internal grooming and dress code document by Lenskart went viral on social media. It laid down detailed rules for the appearance of employees at stores, which many said were discriminatory. For sindoor, the document said it should be minimal and not fall on the forehead. It stated clearly that "bindi is not allowed".

The document also spoke about religious markers more broadly. "Bindi/clutcher is not allowed," it said. It added that "religious threads/wristbands must be taken out," referring to kalawa.

At the same time, the document allowed hijab, with conditions. "If wearing [a] hijab/turban, it should [be] black in colour. The hijab should be of medium chest coverage and must not cover the logo," the document read. It also noted that wearing a burkha in the store was not allowed.

This difference in treating dresses and religious and cultural markers by Lenskart triggered immediate backlash. Many questioned why one form of religious expression appeared restricted while another was permitted.

Responding to the outrage, Peyush Bansal on April 16 issued a clarification on X. He said the document "does not reflect our present guidelines". He added that Lenskart imposes "no restrictions on any form of religious expression, including bindi and tilak".

Around 12 hours later, he issued another statement. He called the viral file an "outdated internal training document". He stressed it was "not an HR policy". Peyush Bansal, who is also a prominent "shark" on business reality television series, Shark Tank India, also admitted that it "contained an incorrect line about bindi/tilak that should never have been written".

Bansal said the issue had been identified earlier. According to him, the line was "discovered" on February 17 and was "immediately removed". He also took responsibility for the lapse, saying he should have caught it sooner.

WHY IS LENSKART FACING BACKLASH, BOYCOTT CALLS AFTER CEO'S CLARIFICATIONS?

However, many are not happy with Peyush Bansal's clarification and have flagged that the issue might not be an "outdated" document as it was claimed. The outraged people also said that Bansal's explanation didn't address allegations of on-ground enforcement of the dress code, and left doubts about whether the policy is influencing employee evaluations at Lenskart.

Despite Bansal's clarifications, criticism has only intensified.

Author and journalist Shefali Vaidya, who claimed she had "irrefutable proof that Lenskart CEO Peyush Bansal was lying" for saying that the grooming code was outdated, added "I have already been approached by several Lenskart employees privately with their horror stories about how their points were docked in video audits for wearing bindi/kalawa, how they were denied leave for Hindu festivals, but their Muslim colleagues got time off for Eid very easily".

Academic-author Anand Ranganathan, demanding a "forensic audit" of the evidence, said Lenskart's "attitude" was "disturbingly akin to apartheid-style treatment of citizens, which couldn't be ignored".

"Is this what passes for secularism? Why does Mr Bansal bend over backwards and for whom? Who are the real owners of Lenskart? This situation surely warrants a forensic audit," Ranganathan wrote on X.

"Lenskart is yet to apologise for informing employees they are permitted to wear a hijab but not a bindi. Open challenge to Peyush Bansal to inform employees they are permitted to wear a bindi but not a hijab. You won't have a head left to lodge your Lenskart frames on," Ranganathan wrote in a separate post.

Others openly called for a boycott of Lenskart. One person on X said, "I think it's hightime now... We completely boycott Lenskart company and its products... We should all stop shopping from Lenskart completely".

"I am going to boycott Lenskart starting today," said another person.

West Bengal-based BJP activist Devdutta Maji said he "regretted buying spectacles from Lenskart".

"... Had I known this before, I would have definitely boycotted Lenskart. BOYCOTT Lenskart and BOYCOTT Piyush Bansal," the BJP functionary from West Bengal said.

Mumbai-based financial adviser Mitesh Shah said it was "frustrating to know that so many of our Hindu brothers and sisters had to undergo such an ordeal while working in a company in Hindustan".

"Peyush Bansal is coming out to be the words amongst them. Ethically, he had already stooped low when he had bought out the minority at X and within a few months sold them at 8X in FPO. Now he is coming out to be crooked in all of his other ways too... Pathetic," Shah posted on X.

Since the backlash following Bansal's statement erupted, Lenskart has not issued a fresh statement addressing these specific allegations so far. Peyush Bansal's clarifications that the current policy allows all forms of religious expression, has failed to bring calm to the situation and raised more questions. Now, the Lenskart controversy over bindi, tilak and hijab, shows no signs of slowing.

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