Ad featuring Sanjana Sanghi criticized for promoting violence against men
A new advertisement featuring Dil Bechara actor Sanjana Sanghi has received heavy backlash on social media for allegedly promoting violence against men. The ad shows Sanjana incessantly slapping the male actor in it. In fact, actor Pooja Bedi has also slammed the company and the actors over the advertisement, tweeting that she was "horrified" by it. Here is more on this.
What is the advertisement all about?
In the new Lionsgate Play app ad, Sanjana can be seen slapping her partner eight times in an attempt to decide which movie to watch on the streaming platform. She slaps him until he tells her to stop. The ad ignited a debate around violence against men and a lot of people urged authorities to take action.
Domestic violence against men is not acceptable: Pooja
Reacting to the advertisement, which has since been deleted from Twitter, Pooja said, "Absolutely horrified to watch this advertisement. Domestic violence against men is not acceptable. What if a man was slapping a woman in this advertisement? (sic)" She added that such advertisements should never get clearance from authorities. "Men have rights," she further wrote.
Here is what Pooja wrote
'It's disgusting': Netizens support Pooja, slam the ad
Fellow social media users have come out in support of Pooja and slammed the advertisement, calling it "disgusting" and "demeaning." A Twitter user wrote, "Who are these people who can like think this? This team where one can share this idea and get internal approvals to pitch to their client? (sic)" Another tweet read, "Strengthening and empowering women does not mean this crap (sic)."
Makers should apologize, said a user
This is the lowest low, opined another
Advertisement regulatory body wasted no time in reacting
Many users also asked the Advertising Standards Council of India to take action against the ad. Replying to the complaints, the self-regulatory body tweeted, "Thank you for tagging us, we are already processing the complaint against this advertisement (sic)." Sanjana Sanghi, who has done cameos in films like Rockstar and Hindi Medium, became a popular face after starring in Dil Bechara this year.
