Reacting to the incident of a Pakistani family being denied accommodation at several hotels in Mumbai, the owner of Dunkin' Donuts in the neighbouring country has put up a board offering free meals and a donut to all Indian visitors as a gesture of goodwill.
Iqbal Latif, the owner of the famous international restaurant chain in Pakistan, told BBC that he decided to welcome Indians warmly, after the Pakistani family's plight in Mumbai. "We want to answer the Shiv Sena with love," he said.
Dunkin' Donuts, which is famous all over the world for its donuts, will be offering a free sandwich meal and a donut to all Indian visitors who have come on a short-term visa to Pakistan. The new promotional campaign is being featured across 26 franchises in Peshawar, Islamabad and Lahore.
The campaign, titled 'Peace, Amity and Understanding', aims to spread the message of peace, especially in the light of recent incidents -- from a cancelled music concert to ink being thrown on a writer who hosted a Pakistani politician's book launch -- by the extremist right-wing political party, Shiv Sena.
The promotional campaign banner also carries the flags of both the countries.
Pakistan has shown its warmth for Indians. Remarkably powerful idea by the Dunkin Donuts. Love surmounts all. pic.twitter.com/s1QSCxA3JO
— Saria Benazir (@SariaBenazir) October 19, 2015
Latif who is elated by the response to the offer, says he was slightly apprehensive about the reaction in Peshawar to the display of the Indian flag, but told The Dawn that visitors and passersby waved at the staff as a sign of approval.
He also said that on the first day of the offer, 17 meals were served to Indians in a Dunkin' Donut outlet in the diplomatic enclave of Islamabad. He added that he had felt “great honour (in hosting our) Indian friends”, according to a report in Hindustan Times. But no Indians have availed the offer at any of the outlets in Lahore and Peshawar yet.
But despite that, Latif said that they have seen a 30 per cent rise in overall sales since the announcement of the offer.
Contact HuffPost India