Kolkata: A controversy has been sparked off over an advertisement by West Bengal government in newspapers for the Jagannath temple in Digha. It features a bizarre entry by the name of ‘Female Vibrators in Digha.’ The advertisement was published in newspapers on April 30. It was the day of the prana pratishtha (consecration) ceremony at Jagannathdham, Digha.
The ceremony was held in the presence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The advertisement was published in multiple newspapers in Bengali and English. The newspapers carried it in its editions across India. Now, it has turned out to be a huge embarrassment for the Mamata government at a time when political analysts viewed the move to be a soft Hindutva approach by the TMC in Bengal, which is often accused of appeasing the minority community. The project was an outreach to the Hindus of Bengal, which came right after the anti-Waqf protests in the state.
What’s the controversy?
The two-page advertisement by the West Bengal government carries an image of the Jagannathdham in Digha. It also features a big cutout of Mamata Banerjee, a navigation map, and a description of the temple.
It also mentions the distance to the Jagannathdham in Digha from spots like the Kharagpur and Howrah stations, Esplanade and Kolkata’s Dum Dum airport. It also posted an QR code to watch the Pran Pratishtha ceremony live.
But, female vibrators in Digha was a pinned location that had crept into the advertisement. This location was marked on the navigation map, which also highlights spots around the Digha Jagannath temple.
The Female Vibrators in Digha is marked with a blue shopping bag icon. It is sandwiched between Amrabati Park and Jagannath Ghat, a religious spot. People on social media were quick to spot and flag the bizarre entry.
Bengaluru-based Karthik, flagging the error, called it an “unforgettable lesson” to always get a fresh pair of eyes to check an ad before it goes to print.
“In the picture here, the map screenshot may look small, but consider you holding a 2-page newspaper spread in your hands and imagine the size of the map then. The map has been added specifically to show the location and hence is quite clear and readable in the print version, including the unrelated/unwanted listing,” Karthik wrote on X.
Unforgettable lesson to,
a. Always get a fresh pair of eyes to check the ad before it goes to print
b. Double-check the details when using a screenshot from Google MapsThis was a 2-page spread across many newspapers yesterday, including The Times of India, The Hindu, Mint,… pic.twitter.com/IMTz7JSNm2
— Karthik 🇮🇳 (@beastoftraal) May 1, 2025
BJP leader Amit Malviya called the goof-up, “deeply disgraceful” and “a deliberate insult to Hindu sentiments”.
“It is deeply disgraceful that the Mamata Banerjee government’s advertisements for the inauguration of the Jagannath Cultural Complex in Digha appeared to promote inappropriate content. This is a deliberate insult to Hindu sentiments and a profound disrespect to the devotees of Lord Jagannath. Such actions reflect a lack of genuine devotion, driven instead by regressive and cynical political motives,” Malviya posted on X on Wednesday.
Here’s how social media reacted:
From today’s newspaper. All fine and good till you zoom in. Zoom in further to ‘how to reach’ till you also reach the ad for ‘female vibrators in Digha’ 😐 pic.twitter.com/32G1reDker
— Ramana Krishnan (@RamanaKrish) April 30, 2025
Just opened the newspaper and spotted this bizarre entry in a government ad map for Jagannath Dham, Digha, ‘Female vibrators in Digha’?! Seriously, how did this get past proofreading? This is a whole new level of absurdity. pic.twitter.com/hRCTZcY8v1
— Ayush Rajawat آیوش راجاوت (@AyushRajawat) April 30, 2025
