Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Shahrukh Khan, and Ranveer Singh have been accused of promoting Gutkha and a plea has been filed against the actor for promoting ‘Gutkha Paan Masala’.
A petition has been filed against actors Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Shahrukh Khan, and Ranveer Singh before a court in Bihar on Thursday, condemning them for promoting the consumption of tobacco and Gutkha Paan Masalas. Ajay Devgn has been serving as the Brand Ambassador for Vimaal Paan Masala for a few years now. Shahrukh Khan joined him last year as one of the new faces of the campaign. Amitabh Bachchan was on board as the Brand Ambassador for Kamala Pasand but cut ties with the brand soon after. Ranveer Singh had also endorsed the brand previously.
The plea has been filed by social activist Tamanna Hashmi before the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Muzaffarpur who expressed her grievance on how featuring these actors actually encourages common people to take up commodities advertised.
The plea has been made to seek for directions to the police that FIR is lodged under IPC sections 311 (punishment to a thug), 420 (cheating), and 467 and 468 (forgery) against the named actors. It is likely to be taken up for hearing soon.
Tamanna also commented on how Ranveer Singh was misusing his power as a celebrity in endorsing Gutkhas and Paan Masalas and featuring them in their ads.
A month earlier, Akshay Kumar cut all ties with the Vimal brand after he faced severe backlash from his fans after appearing in the ad which also featured actors Ajay Devgn and Shahrukh Khan. He pledged that he would donate the money he earned from the advertisement.
Amitabh Bachchan ended his contract with Kamala Pasand, a tobacco brand this October. His office issued statements regarding certain information not known to Amitabh Bachchan.
When Mr. Bachchan became associated with the brand, he wasn’t aware it falls under surrogate advertising. Now, he has terminated the contract with the brand, has written to them about his termination, and has returned the money received for the promotion.
Statement issued by the Office of Amitabh Bachchan.
Amitabh Bachchan sent a legal notice to the company in November after the company continued to air commercials featuring him even after Amitabh Bachchan terminated the contract with them.
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