"Is she 500 years old?"
Veteran Indian fashion designer Ritu Kumar is facing severe backlash online after making a controversial claim.
Kumar claimed she invented the generic term “zardozi” for an exhibition in the 1980s.
She appeared on The Masoom Minawala Show and made this statement regarding the term “embroidery”.
The claim prompted immediate and substantial criticism from social media users across multiple platforms.
During the episode, the designer remarked: “The word zardozi was not there. I did an exhibition, didn’t know what to call it.
“Zar is the name from Iran, and dozi, I stuck with it, and we put zardozi. Now today it’s become a generic term.”
The interviewer responded with: “Oh, really?”
To which Kumar added: “For that exhibition in the 80s.”
The host then remarked: “And then it just took off.”
Netizens immediately took to the comment section to point out that the claim was deeply incorrect.
One commenter remarked: “Nani’s, Dadi’s and generations before them are all collectively confused right now, lol.”
Another user provided a comprehensive historical breakdown, noting significant facts about the embroidery technique:
“Zardozi is one of the world’s oldest and most luxurious embroidery techniques.
“The word comes from the Persian words “zar” (gold) and “dozi” (embroidery or stitching), literally meaning “gold embroidery.”…Persian Origins (around 1,500–2,500 years ago).”
Critics expressed concern over high-profile designers distributing what they viewed as made-up stories deliberately.
One netizen remarked: “Big designers like herself giving out made-up stories, not being aware of what impact it will have on the industry.
“One should not bend the textile history just for their timely fame.”
Other reactions traced the term back significantly further to the 14th-century Delhi Sultanate period.
A user remarked: “Absolute rubbish. Don’t peddle misinformation.
“The word ‘zardozi’ was coined by the Delhi Sultanate ruler Firoz Shah Tughlaq during the 14th century. Is she 500 years old?”
Another history enthusiast noted important documentation: “Zardozi appears in several Persian texts from the rule of the sultanate since the 14th century and is repeatedly referred to in Jobson’s tome on Indian textiles from the 18th century.”
The audacity of the statement left many online commentators genuinely stunned by the claim.
One said: “Thankfully some of us still know history and have a brain.”
The podcast host also faced direct scrutiny for failing to research the claim adequately.
A viewer noted: “She definitely did not invent this word. Please research before promoting such things.
“I am a big fan of your podcast, Masoom, but I was shocked when you posted it without proper research.”
Many questioned why someone with her experience would make such an easily disprovable historical claim.
Ritu Kumar has not publicly responded to the backlash or offered clarifications about the statement.
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