James Bond star Pierce Brosnan recently became the brand ambassador for a very unlikely product, Pan Bahar. The suave actor who previously endorsed supercars and luxury watches in his films is now endorsing a brand of paan masala! The ad quickly went viral on the internet and was greeted with mixed reactions.
Pahlaj Nihalani, the chief of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) imposed an equivocal ban on the Pierce Brosnan ad and had a lot to say about the actor.
“I haven’t seen the ad. But it is very difficult to believe Pierce Brosnan has done this. Money can hardly be a criteria when you’re selling death to people. However, he has chosen to do what he has done. But there is no way we can certify the ad. All paan masala, tobacco, alcohol ads are automatically and unconditionally banned.”
The virality of the ad shocked Mr Nihalani and wondered what Pierce Brosnan hoped to accomplish by endorsing such a brand.
“I repeat, all paan masala ads are banned by the government on all public platforms. So what does Mr Brosnan hope to achieve by doing this ad?”
Mr Nihalani also said that any ad that uses a brand name associated with alcohol, tobacco or paan masala is strictly banned without exception. Even the “club soda” ads featuring stars like Shah Rukh Khan and Saif Ali Khan are prohibited from featuring on national television.
Well, this is indeed a progressive step for the nation. Let us hope this ban translates into lesser amount of red spit adorning public areas.
News Source: DNA