A brief comment on a hackathon photo triggered a big backlash on X from the Indian and South Asian tech community. Nik Pash, head of AI at Cline, wrote “imagine the smell” under a photo showing many developers crowded together. Indian users quickly recognized this as a racist meme aimed at Indians, mocking them with old stereotypes about smell and hygiene. Pash defended the comment as a harmless joke about hackathons, saying, “I’m not going to apologise for making a harmless joke about hackathons smelling bad.” He added that he had attended many events that smelled bad. This stance worsened the reaction. Several Indian tech figures explained that the phrase carries racial meaning, regardless of the intent. Investor Deedy Das said, “Every time I’ve seen ‘imagine the smell’, it’s an attack on Indians.” The phrase has a long, ugly history linked to stereotypes about curry smell and uncleanliness targeting South Asians. The phrase often appears online as a subtle racial insult. It is a way to mock Indians while claiming it’s just a joke. Indian users say they encounter such comments regularly, showing how deep this hurt runs. Defenders focused on intent, but many pointed out that impact matters more. For Indians in tech, such comments pile up from school to workplace, causing repeated harm. After public pressure, Saoud Rizwan, Cline’s CEO, said the company distanced itself from the remark and acknowledged harm. However, questions remain if true understanding will change future behaviour or if such incidents will be dismissed as misunderstandings. This controversy shows how history, context, and listening matter. For many Indians, the phrase was never neutral. It was a harsh reminder of ongoing racial bias in tech spaces.