Kartik Aaryan endorsed a condom brand instead of choosing a paan masala brand, reveals Vidya Balan

Several Bollywood celebrities, including superstar Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff and Hrithik Roshan among others, have been criticised for endorsing paan masala brands.

By: Entertainment Desk

Mumbai | October 31, 2024 02:05 PM IST

3 min read

Kartik Aaryan opens up on his relationship status. (Photo: Kartik Aaryan, Vidya Balan/Instagram)

There’s no temptation which can make actor Kartik Aaryan endorse a paan masala brand, as the Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 stars reveals he has “refused” to lend his name or face to such ads. Several Bollywood celebrities, including superstar Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff and Hrithik Roshan among others, have been criticised for endorsing paan masala brands.

In an interview with Siddharth Kannan, Kartik was asked about his anti-paan masala stand, to which the actor said, “I have refused paan masala ads. They tempted me with a lot of things, but I was never tempted to do that at all.”

Also Read | John Abraham slams actors for endorsing paan masala: ‘You’re selling death. How can you live with it?’

Joining him in the interview was his Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 co-star Vida Balan, who said the “competition” was between paan masala and a condom ad, making Kartik laugh out aloud with the revelation. Vidya said her point was that Kartik chose to endorse a health product, instead of paan masala which was a “great thing.” Kartik, who kept laughing, joked, “Please someone stop her!” Regaining his composure, Kartik then added, “Yes, that’s exactly what I chose. Safety first.”

In 2022, Akshay Kumar apologised to fans for promoting a tobacco brand and said that he would be more cautious in the future. He stepped down as an ambassador of the brand writing, “With all humility, I step back. I have decided to contribute the entire endorsement fee towards a worthy cause.” The said ad featured him alongside Ajay Devgn and Shah Rukh Khan, who continue to feature in the said commercials.

The same year, when Ajay Devgn was asked about similar backlash of endorsing paan masala, he had said it was a “personal choice,” adding, “When you do something, you also see how harmful it would be. Somethings are harmful, some are not. I would say it without naming it because I don’t want to promote it; I was doing elaichi. What I feel is more than advertisements, if certain things are so wrong, then they should not be sold.”

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