Indian celebrities among their other works also are approached by major brands and companies to endorse their products, services, and more. Given their popularity and good name among the general public, brands know that their product will reach a wide audience.
It is also assumed that the public will be encouraged to buy those products then if they know that their favourite celebrity has given it their so-called stamp of approval.
However, while this used to work in olden times, the younger generations have become slightly more aware of the nature of advertising and that not everything is as transparent as one might hope for.
The public in recent times has fervently called out celebrities for the things they endorse, such as when there was a huge uproar against Akshay Kumar in 2022 for agreeing to promote a product by Vimal, a pan masala brand. Two other superstars, Ajay Devgn and Shah Rukh Khan are also brand ambassadors for the product.
This was seen as a big departure for the actor who heavily supports a healthy and fit lifestyle, often talking about how disciplined he is in his regular life, eating consciously, living healthily, and being quite responsible with his endorsements too thus far.
After the backlash, Akshay posted that he would be stepping back from the brand and not be an ambassador for it anymore.
Time and again, Indian celebrities have been called out for brands they’ve endorsed for being problematic, unethical, and overall wrong for society. Here are a few instances when Indian celebs have endorsed problematic products.
Read More: “Felt Like A Victim,” Vivek Oberoi Opens Up About Being Pushed Out Of Bollywood
A lot of these brand campaigns are surrogate advertising and are meant to promote the main brand under the guise of a legal one.
Surrogate advertising is basically where a banned product like alcohol, tobacco, cigarettes, and more are promoted under the guise of another product. Other examples of this could be Bacardi’s Blast music CDs, Imperial Blue’s line of cassettes and CDs, and more.
The advertisement of alcohol and tobacco is illegal in India, so a lot of brands use the form of surrogate advertisement where they promote a legal product. In these cases, it would be the elaichi for Pan Bahar, Vimal, and Rajnigandha, but they are all under the name of a pan masala brand which is what is being promoted at the end of the day.
Same with the advertisement by Alia Bhatt for Blender’s Pride glassware, although the product being advertised is glassware, the brand name is an Indian whisky label being promoted.
Image Credits: Google Images
Feature image designed by Saudamini Seth
Sources: The Indian Express, Forbes India, The Print
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This post is tagged under: Indian Celebs, Alcohol Advertising, surrogate advertising, Surrogate Advertising Alcohol, Surrogate Advertising In India, Hrithik Roshan Elaichi, Alia Bhatt Blenders Pride, Akshay Kumar Vimal Kesari ads, Yami Gautam Fair and Lovely, Deepika Padukone Kellogg’s Special K, SRK Fair and Handsome, Tiger Shroff Pan Bahar, Virat Kohli MPL, MS Dhoni WinZo, Priyanka Chopra Rajnigandha Silver Pearls
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