Her post quickly went viral, attracting a flurry of comments.
An X user recently called out Vistara Airlines for labelling their in-flight meals as "Hindu" (vegetarian) and "Muslim" (chicken). Aarti Tikoo Singh took to X to criticise the airline for perpetuating stereotypes and communalising food choices. She also questioned whether Vistara was attempting to link food preferences with religious identity, sarcastically asking if they would also segregate passengers and vegetables by religion.
''Hello @airvistara, why the hell is a vegetarian meal called a ''Hindu meal'' and a chicken meal called a “Muslim meal” on your flights? Who told you that all Hindus are vegetarian and all Muslims are non-vegetarian? Why are you thrusting food choices on people? Who authorised you to do this? Are you now going to communalise vegetables, chicken and passengers on a flight too? I was so shocked by this pathetic behaviour that I booked both meals to defy your order,'' she wrote while sharing a screenshot of her ticket showing one "Hindu meal" and one "Moslem meal".
See the tweet here:
Her post quickly went viral, attracting a flurry of comments. While some users echoed her sentiments, asking Vistara to explain the reasoning behind the "Hindu" and "Muslim" meal labels, others jumped in to provide context and clarify the issue.
Several social media users clarified that the airline meal codes are not specific to Vistara, but rather an industry-wide standard. They explained that the International Air Transport Association (IATA) establishes standardized meal codes, which are used across the aviation industry to streamline meal management and communication among airlines, caterers, and ground staff. This ensures consistency and efficiency in handling diverse passenger meal requirements.
One user wrote, ''Are you travelling after a long time? This is nothing new, international flights have that classification too. Instead of writing halal they put muslim meal, same for Hindu veg meal which might have onion and garlic and Jain veg meal would not have onion, garlic, etc.''
''FYI in general aviation parlance, a Hindu Meal (HNML) is NOT necessarily a Veg meal - it could be a Non Veg meal that is not Halal. Similarly a Moslem meal (MOML) is a Non Vegetarian meal that is HALAL,'' explained Sanjay Lazar, CEO of Avialaz Consultants.
Sanjiv Kapoor, a seasoned aviation expert and former CEO-designate of Jet Airways, also weighed in on the controversy. He wrote, ''These are standard international meal codes used globally across GDS-based airlines, not just by Vistara. However, I do think IATA or whoever needs to update/modernize these outdated and at times somewhat puzzling meal codes.''