When Kauser Indorewala and his business partners were deciding on a name for their biotech venture, they didn’t think twice about settling for ISIS — the Egyptian goddess of health. Today, however, ISIS has achieved a sinister renown as the Islamic militant group infamous for its chilling brutality in Iraq and Syria.

The atrocities committed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) threaten to tarnish the brand identity of several home-bred companies that have used the ISIS name for years, though they are not even remotely connected with the terrorist organisation.

Indorewala and promoters of another 43 Indian companies, according to Ministry of Corporate Affairs data, now face a difficult decision: whether to rename their businesses.

“Customers from Israel and other countries in the Middle-East have stopped communicating with us. Several Indian Government organisations have told us to change the company’s name as they are not comfortable with ISIS,” says Indorewala, a Director of the Nashik-based ISIS Biotechnology.

The company has resisted the change for fear of diluting its brand equity. However, “if the pressure keeps mounting and things do not change, we may have to change the name”, said Indorewala.

Dilip Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of Kolkata-based Isis Design Services, is in a similar predicament. He said his company is being compelled to let go of a name in use since 1999.

“We do not have a choice really, as most of our customers are from the West. They are tuned into what’s happening in the Middle East. We have been clearly told they would discontinue working with us unless we rebrand,” Thomas said.

Isis Design Services, which provides mobile application and web development services, is now working on a new name for the company.

Even a coincidental association with a terror outfit could badly damage a company’s reputation, said brand consultant Harish Bijoor. “ISIS is seen as the future of terror. Brands must dissociate themselves from this movement by changing their names, so that they do not get tarnished by the same brush.”

Globally, companies are removing ISIS from their names. In July, mobile wallet app company Isis, a joint venture between AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon, rebranded itself as Softcard.

“Many visitors on our company’s Facebook page post snide remarks. So, there is an impact in terms of the dogma that the name ISIS creates,” said Shubhojit Chatterjee, Director of New Delhi-based Isis Lifestyle, a visual arts and merchandise production firm.

However, Chatterjee said his team had decided to stick with the name. “Changing the company name is like acknowledging the terrorist outfit, and that’s exactly what they want,” he added.

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