In a second episode of insensitive videos this week — the first being Toggle’s offensive use of blackface in its original series (which it has since apologised for) — The Smart Local (TSL) came under fire for their ignorance and distasteful content in an episode called ‘Singaporeans Try: Indian Snacks’.
Supposedly in celebration of Deepavali, the local website produced the five-minute video, which garnered a ton of criticism and went private in less than one hour after it was uploaded yesterday.
Some of the offensive elements included the people in the video (who are TSL staff) pulling faces while sampling Indian snacks, comparing ladoo to diarrhoea and looking dumbstruck when asked about the meaning behind Deepavali.
And then, as though it was okay to judge and insult food from another culture in Singapore and get away with it, the video ended with a ‘Happy Deepavali’ greeting.
Not cool, TSL. Not cool at all.
Needless to say, people were pissed off, and some took to social media to condemn the video and its reflection on the website. Poet Marc Nair and playwright Joel Bertrand Tan also voiced their opinions:
When the backlash on social media began, TSL apologised on one of the posts, admitting they ‘made a big mistake’. But then they went on to say that ‘more research could have been done in preparation for this video, and that’s something we will learn from moving forward’.
That last part did not sit well with the public. (Seriously, research?)
TSL have since put up an actual apology on their Facebook page.
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