Malaysian celebrities make fun of Neelofa’s ‘Muslim-friendly’ slippers

Kuala Lumpur — Lately things have been challenging for Malaysian celebrity/entrepreneur Neelofa. Last week she received backlash for her Langkawi trip (due to the pandemic, interstate travel was not permitted), and this time Neelofa got into hot water again when she released her “Muslim-friendly” pair of sandals with Fipper.

While the incident continues to spark debate, the spotlight has momentarily shone on competing brand Bata’s post that was on its official social media. The shoe company has released its slip-on sandals under its “Power” line, as reported by Hype.my.

“Looking for a comfortable sandal that’s ‘Wallet-Friendly’? Try the Power slip-on sandals that’s friendly to everyone 😀,” said the caption. If you would like to know, the sandals are priced at RM39.90 (Si13) per pair. The internet was abuzz upon seeing the post. The Instagram post became viral on Twitter thanks to a user known as @DenaBahrin. Social media users left some funny remarks in response.

On top of it all, this controversy has caught the attention of Malaysian celebrities including Harith Iskander and Caprice. The Malaysian comedian took to his Instagram page to share his “unpopular opinion” on the matter.

“I don’t have a problem with this. Any friend of my feet is a friend of mine. Now I know why I have never been comfortable with my ‘selipar Jepun’ (flip flops). They just weren’t friendly enough to me. Am looking forward to the release of friendly neck-ties and watch-bands for Muslims,” Harith wrote. 

Meanwhile, Caprice (real name Ariz Ramli) uploaded a photo of a pair of Lacoste-branded slip-on sandals on his account. The rapper wrote, “Not friendly at all,” seemingly poking fun at the current situation involving Lofa and Fipper.

At the end of the day, bad publicity is still free publicity, as they say in showbiz. /TISG