Brand Ambassador Hema Malini says ad does not resonate with her values
Home appliance brand Kent RO Systems, which recently came under fire for a “digital ad, on Wednesday said that it has withdrawn the ad and will take “corrective and preventive” action.
Social media users criticized the company’s ad for Kent Atta & Bread Maker, featuring its brand ambassador Hema Malini , for being discriminatory and derogatory towards domestic workers.
The ad stated, “Are you allowing your maid to knead the atta dough by hand? Her hands may be infected.”
Complaints against the brand were also lodged with the Advertising Standards Council of India. This prompted the brand to apologize and withdraw the advertisement.
Public apology issued
In a statement, Mahesh Gupta, Chairman and Managing Director, Kent RO System Pvt Ltd said, “The advertisement is contrary to the beliefs and professional standards of Kent. We will investigate how our advertisement standards were compromised, and we will further take corrective and preventive action so that such incidents are not repeated in the future.”
“We once again re-iterate that we support all and respect all sections of the society and apologise for the mistake,” the statement added.
Actor and BJP MP Hema Malini tweeted on Wednesday evening, “Views expressed by the recent advertisement of Kent Atta by @KentROSystems do not resonate with my values and are inappropriate, The Chairman has already tendered a public apology for the mistake. I hereby wish to put on record that I respect and stand by all sections of society.”
Hema Malini has been Kent's brand ambassador since 2005. This has been her longest association with a brand. Known for its RO water purifiers, the company has been focusing on diversification into other categories over the past few years such as air-purifiers, kitchen appliances and vacuum cleaners.
Thank you for being a loyal user of Portfolio.
Portfolio will be a paid section hereon.
Please Subscribe to get access to one of our early bird packs.
Or click on Free Trial to get 14 days free trial.
What You'll Get
-
Web + Mobile
Access exclusive content of the Hindu Businessline across desktops, tablet and mobile device.
-
Exclusive Portfolio and Investment Advice, Banking, Lifestyle and Specials
Get diverse set of perspectives from our trusted experts on Portfolio, Banking, Economy, Environment and others.
-
Ad free experience
Experience cleaner site with zero ads and faster load times.
-
Personalised dashboard
Customize your preference and get a personalized recommendation of stories based on your interest.
Published on
May 28, 2020
A letter from the Editor
Dear Readers,
The coronavirus crisis has changed the world completely in the last few months. All of us have been locked into our homes, economic activity has come to a near standstill. Everyone has been impacted.
Including your favourite business and financial newspaper. Our printing and distribution chains have been severely disrupted across the country, leaving readers without access to newspapers. Newspaper delivery agents have also been unable to service their customers because of multiple restrictions.
In these difficult times, we, at BusinessLine have been working continuously every day so that you are informed about all the developments – whether on the pandemic, on policy responses, or the impact on the world of business and finance. Our team has been working round the clock to keep track of developments so that you – the reader – gets accurate information and actionable insights so that you can protect your jobs, businesses, finances and investments.
We are trying our best to ensure the newspaper reaches your hands every day. We have also ensured that even if your paper is not delivered, you can access BusinessLine in the e-paper format – just as it appears in print. Our website and apps too, are updated every minute, so that you can access the information you want anywhere, anytime.
But all this comes at a heavy cost. As you are aware, the lockdowns have wiped out almost all our entire revenue stream. Sustaining our quality journalism has become extremely challenging. That we have managed so far is thanks to your support. I thank all our subscribers – print and digital – for your support.
I appeal to all or readers to help us navigate these challenging times and help sustain one of the truly independent and credible voices in the world of Indian journalism. Doing so is easy. You can help us enormously simply by subscribing to our digital or e-paper editions. We offer several affordable subscription plans for our website, which includes Portfolio, our investment advisory section that offers rich investment advice from our highly qualified, in-house Research Bureau, the only such team in the Indian newspaper industry.
A little help from you can make a huge difference to the cause of quality journalism!
Support Quality Journalism