Shah Rukh, Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff now get notices from FDA’s Tukaram Mundhe over Vimal ad: ‘Explain in 15 days
India: The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA), led by Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe, has issued show-cause notices to Bollywood actors Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff over their 2024 advertisement for Vimal Elaichi.
The regulator has alleged that the campaign amounts to surrogate or indirect promotion of Vimal Pan Masala, a product whose manufacture, storage, transportation, distribution and sale are prohibited in Maharashtra under a prohibition order.
The notices, issued on August 11, were served at Shah Rukh Khan’s residence Mannat in Bandra, Ajay Devgn’s home in Juhu, and to Tiger Shroff through his production house. The actors have been given 15 days from the date of receipt to submit written explanations and supporting documents.
According to the notice, the use of the expression “VIMAL Elaichi” appears to create an association with the Vimal Pan Masala brand. It “prima facie appears that the advertisement promotes the VIMAL brand, which is mainly associated with Pan Masala,” the FDA stated, adding that this could mislead consumers and indirectly promote a prohibited product.
The FDA has directed the three actors to immediately discontinue their participation in and endorsement of the advertisement, remove related promotional content from their official social media handles and other digital platforms under their control, and refrain from any further cooperation in its broadcasting or dissemination.
They have also been asked to furnish details of their endorsement agreements or contracts, campaign briefs, product information, payment arrangements, the advertising agency and brand owner involved, and evidence of due diligence undertaken before participating. The regulator specifically wants documentary proof on whether Vimal Elaichi is an independent product available for sale or a brand-extension communication intended to promote the pan masala.
The action forms part of the Maharashtra FDA’s intensified crackdown on gutkha, tobacco and nicotine-containing pan masala products under Mundhe’s leadership. Penalties under relevant provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act and consumer protection laws can include fines of up to Rs 10 lakh (with higher figures cited in some reports under other laws) and possible restrictions on future endorsements.
The actors featured together as brand endorsers in the 2024 Vimal Elaichi campaign.
