Bollywood’s bad boy Ranveer Singh has yet again courted controversy. The actor’s recent commercial for brand Rupa Frontline was criticized by animal rights organization PETA for displaying violence against animals.
The actor can be seen in the commercial, diving into the ocean to save a girl from a shark. In a bid to impress the girl with his masculinity, Ranveer annihilates the shark by beating it up to rescue the girl. PETA, however, was not impressed with the ad and planned to write to the actor and the brand to convey their concerns.
“PETA will be writing to Rupa Frontline and Ranveer Singh to share our concerns on behalf of sharks and today’s socially aware youth,” said Poorva Joshipura, PETA India CEO, in a statement. He also went further and clarified that there was nothing heroic in mistreating an animal.
“By recruiting Ranveer Singh, Rupa Frontline is desperately trying to attract youth, but nothing shows how utterly out of touch with youngsters the company actually is than its depiction of cruelty to animals in its advertisement. There is nothing sexy about pretending to beat up an animal, and nothing that may disgust a girl more.”
“The ‘ruthless killers’ in the human-shark relationship are actually the humans. Recent studies indicate that up to 73 million sharks are killed each year, mainly for their fins, which are put in soups and eaten mostly in Asia. India is the second largest shark fishing nation in the world,” Joshipura added.
However, a clarification by the brand was issued in which they claimed that a toy or prop had been used instead of a real life shark.
“This is to clarify that the shark shown in the latest Rupa commercial featuring Ranveer Singh is a rubber toy, no animal was used in the shoot. It is not our intention to hurt anyone’s sentiment. We will be adding a disclaimer to the ad to this effect,” said Mukesh Agarwal, whole-time director, Rupa & Co.
I guess it’s safe to say sometimes sharks are more beloved to human beings than movie stars!