THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Osama bin Laden, the fiery fighter and the most wanted man on the face of earth once, now fights a battle for shop space with the likes of revolutionary Che Guevara, pacifist John Lennon and English rock bands such as Police and Led Zeppelin.T-shirts in myriad hues with Osama splashed all over them in black thick silhouettes have started appearing in the local market. The sharp facial features of the dreaded terrorist with a trademark beard has made it easy for the designers.Though the death of the Al Qaeda leader had sparked off a huge market for Osama T-shirts in the United States, most of them displayed anti-Osama sentiments with pithy comments such as ‘Osama - World Hide and Seek Champion’, ‘RIP - Rest in pieces’, ‘Got him’ and ‘Osama got Obama’d’. The T-shirts that have come to the city market, however, lack the stinging slogans and are even more creative with one-liners such as ‘Where you bin’. The place of origin is also a little different.While 23-year-old Maurice Harary, who set up his T-shirt website soon after Osama’s death, minted money out of American patriotism, the shop owners here say that they import the T-shirts not from America, but from Bangkok. The label attached to the T-shirts, along with the washing instructions, also has a ‘Made in Thailand’ tag on it.While most youngsters in town are still in the dark about the availability of such T-shirts, several shop owners that Express talked to were pretty excited about the resurrection of the turbaned terrorist. "Oh, it sure will sell like hot cakes. One week from now, you will get both Che and Osama T-shirts,’’ promised a shop owner at Palayam.While the shop keepers are on a high, the hardcore Che supporters are not. "Che is a youth icon all over the world and millions of youth not only wear his shirts, but also carry him in lockets, bracelets, rings and what not. Che fought against the very forces which gave birth to Osama bin Laden. In no way can Osama bin Laden replace Che,’’ says A N Shamseer, all-India joint secretary of the SFI.The similarity between Che and Osama bin Laden stops at the mode of warfare they used, says A Sabu, a Communist party member and a lecturer in biotechnology at Kannur."Glorifying Osama bin Laden through T-shirts could develop a mindset in the youngsters that would foster the growth of religious fundamentalism. This is not a matter to be taken lightly,’’ he says.While the debates are on, the shop from where Express purchased the Osama T-shirt has sold as many as 12 out of the first lot of 15 tees. A new set is all set to arrive in two weeks, just in time for the Onam shoppers.
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