Vimal Ad Trouble: SRK, Ajay Devgn And Tiger Shroff Get FDA Notices
- pradeep
- 4 minutes ago
- 2 min read
The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration has issued show-cause notices to Bollywood actors Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff over their appearance in a Vimal Elaichi advertisement.
The regulator alleges that although the campaign promotes a cardamom-based product, the branding may indirectly promote Vimal Pan Masala, a restricted product category in Maharashtra.
Actors Asked To Stop Association
The nine-page notices question the actors over their participation in the 2024 campaign and direct them to immediately discontinue their association with the advertisement.
They have also been asked to remove promotional content related to the campaign from their official social media accounts and submit an explanation within 15 days.
FDA Seeks Contracts And Payment Details
The regulator has sought copies of endorsement agreements, campaign briefs and payment records.
It has also asked the actors to provide details showing whether they carried out due diligence before agreeing to endorse the product.
Why Vimal Elaichi Is Under Scrutiny
The advertisement technically promotes Vimal Elaichi, which is a cardamom-based product.
However, the FDA argues that the Vimal name, branding and visual presentation create a strong association with Vimal Pan Masala.
According to the regulator, this could mislead consumers and potentially amount to surrogate advertising for a prohibited product.
What Maharashtra Law Says
Maharashtra prohibits the manufacture, storage, transportation, distribution and sale of gutka and pan masala containing tobacco or nicotine.
The latest one-year prohibition order came into effect on July 13, 2026 under Section 30(2)(a) of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
However, Section 30(2)(a) relates to the state’s prohibition order itself and is not the provision under which the actors have been served notices.
Sections 24 And 53 Cited
While examining the alleged misleading advertisement, the FDA has cited Sections 24 and 53 of the Food Safety and Standards Act.
Section 53 provides for a penalty of up to ₹10 lakh in cases involving misleading food advertisements.
Wider Crackdown Across Maharashtra
The action comes amid a larger enforcement drive led by FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe against banned gutka and pan masala products.
Between May 25 and July 31, authorities reportedly conducted raids at 658 establishments, seized prohibited products worth ₹15.11 crore, registered 519 FIRs and arrested 701 people.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Celebrity endorsements can give a product enormous visibility, even when the advertised item is technically different from a restricted brand associated with the same name and identity.
The Maharashtra FDA’s action could become an important test of how regulators deal with surrogate advertising and how much responsibility celebrities carry when promoting products linked to banned categories.
For brands and endorsers, the message is clear: the legal scrutiny may extend beyond the product named in the advertisement to the wider branding consumers associate with it.
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