Akshay Kumar has clarified that the brand can legally run the already-shot ads till the end of November 2023 and that this particular ad was shot in October 2021
Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar has given a clarification regarding his recent appearance in a new Vimal advertisement, months after stepping down as the brand ambassador for Vimal Elaichi and publicly apologising for endorsing the brand.
The actor pointed out that his involvement in the new ad is not a comeback but rather a part of the legal contract with the brand.
Kumar came down heavily on a news portal for reporting his ‘return’ to the brand.
“‘Returns’ as ambassador? Here’s some fact check for you Bollywood Hungama, if by chance you are interested in things other than fake news. These ads were shot on 13th October, 2021. I have not had anything to do with the brand ever since I publicly announced the discontinuation of the endorsement. They can legally run the already-shot ads till the end of next month. Chill and do some real news,” he wrote on X.
The new ad features Ajay Devgn and Shahrukh Khan waiting in a car for Kumar who is busy listening to music therefore to gain his attention the former two throw a stone which accidentally hits the glass door of a lady.
In the meantime, Devgn slits open a pack of Vimal Elaichi, the fragrance (optical) of which catches Kumar’s attention and makes him come down to the duo awaiting him.
Last year, after the launch of Vimal Elaichi’s ad campaign titled ‘Bolo Zubaan Kesari’, Kumar was not only subjected to massive social media backlash and trolling but had to actually put out an apology on social media for having appeared alongside the duo of Devgn and Khan.
At the time, he had also said that the reaction of the fans over the past few days had “deeply affected” him and announced that he would be taking a ‘step back’ along with promising the users that he would be ‘mindful’ of his future choices for endorsements.
Some of the netizens took to microblogging platform X to highlight the ‘hypocrisy’ of the actor.
