Canada firm which mocked Indian techie’s surname offers $10,000 apology, but…

Dbrand, a well-known accessories brand, has reacted following criticism for mocking an Indian man’s surname after he complained about a MacBook skin had had bought from them. The Canadian company said it apologised to the man and offered him $10,000 “as a gesture of goodwill”.
Bhuwan Chitransh, a Pune man working in the Netherlands, had complained on social media about his MacBook skin’s colour change within two months of purchase.
Dbrand, in response, made a sharp comeback, mocking the customer’s surname.
“Your last name is basically s**t rash, be serious,” it wrote on X (formerly Twitter), responding to the complaint.
The tone was seen as racist and has sparked outrage on X, with many users expressing their dismay and calling for an apology from Dbrand. The company, however, remained unapologetic and has not deleted the original post which has garnered close to eight million views and over 2,800 comments.
On Wednesday, Dbrand reaffirmed its stance with a detailed response. In a three-point statement, the company acknowledged the incident, stating, “Well that escalated quickly. Yes – we made fun of a guy’s name. It was a huge fumble. We apologized to him directly and offered him $10,000 as a gesture of goodwill.”
Dbrand emphasised that this tone reflects their social media approach and that they have no intention of changing it.
“We’ve been poking fun at customers on social media for over a decade now. We’re not going to stop, but maybe next time you’ll be the one who gets $10,000.”
Bhuwan Chitransh, meanwhile, tagged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and the BJP to amplify how he was targeted by the Canadian brand. “This comment reflects the invaluable perspective of an brand towards Indian customers,” he wrote on X, with the hashtags #racism and #racistdbrand.
Dbrand, headquartered in Canada, is best known for his iPhone cases and MacBook skins.