Dbrand faces backlash for mocking Pune-based techie's surname, brand offers $10,000 'as a gesture of goodwill'

In response to criticism for mocking an Indian man's surname, Dbrand, a well-known accessories brand, has issued an apology and offered $10,000 "as a gesture of goodwill."

Bhuwan Chitransh, a resident of Pune working in the Netherlands, voiced dissatisfaction on social media about his MacBook skin's colour change within two months of purchase.

However, Dbrand's response took a sharp turn, as the company chose to mock the customer's surname in their reply.


“Your last name is basically s**t rash, be serious,” the company retorted on X (formerly Twitter), escalating the situation.

The tone of Dbrand's response was deemed racist, leading to widespread outrage on X, with many users demanding an apology from the company. Despite the backlash, Dbrand remained unapologetic and left the original post intact, which has garnered significant attention with millions of views and thousands of comments.

On Wednesday, Dbrand reiterated 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 defended its social media approach, emphasizing that poking fun at customers has been a part of their strategy for over a decade, and 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."

Meanwhile, Bhuwan Chitransh tagged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, and the BJP to highlight the incident. “This comment reflects the invaluable perspective of a brand towards Indian customers," he wrote on X, using hashtags such as #racism and #racistdbrand.

Dbrand, headquartered in Canada, is best known for its iPhone cases and MacBook skins.