The recent cricket World Cup held in India took over our lives in a way that not many collective sports events have in the recent past. Community camaraderie was at its highest with people socialising to watch matches, and everyone was in good spirits as Team India was on a winning streak till the very end.
For brands, it was an ideal opportunity to promote their products with people glued to the TV. And to get the message across about their products being the best on the market, they relied on a foolproof method — celebrity endorsement. One such endorsement that didn’t sit too well with a health-conscious audience, however, was former Indian cricket captain M. S. Dhoni promoting Lay’s chips.
In the ad that played on a loop throughout the tournament, Dhoni rings the bell of many homes and offers to watch the match with the homeowners on the condition that they have Lay’s chips to eat while watching: “No Lay’s, No Game” is the surprising and quite unhealthy tagline he stands by.
Interestingly, the only home that ends up with bags of Lay’s handy, is one where a bunch of teenagers have collected to watch the match. Since this demographic is arguably the most sensitive to marketing, and most prone to developing unhealthy habits that last a lifetime, this ad and product endorsement was most certainly an irresponsible move on Dhoni’s part. Through it, he basically assented to contributing to childhood obesity and also gave a thumbs up to the environmental hazards linked to the non-biodegradable plastic packaging of these products.
Dhoni is merely one of many celebrities who have endorsed a slew of unhealthy products in the past. Think of the three Khans (Shah Rukh, Salman and Aamir) promoting cola brands, Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgn promoting tobacco products, Alia Bhatt endorsing sugary drinks like Frooti, and Saif Ali Khan promoting alcohol brands. Do these celebrities feel no responsibility toward their audience?
“I feel these celebrity endorsements are a shame as most of these celebrities are followed by youngsters and teens. They are exposed to these ads online where most of these celebrities endorse unhealthy products. Exposure to such ads can lead to harmful results such as over-eating junk food in one’s formative years,” says dietician and author Deepa Gandhi, who specialises in writing nutrition-related articles and e-books.
Dr. Rohini Patil, nutritionist, founder of wellness venture Nutracy Lifestyle and author of ‘The Lifestyle Diet’, finds the trend of celebs endorsing unhealthy products, particularly those laden with sugars and fats, worrisome because of its impact on public health.
“It reflects a dissonance between the image of wellness the celebrities project and the products they endorse,” she shares astutely. “There is no doubt that they play a pivotal role in shaping public perceptions. Endorsing unhealthy products can inadvertently send mixed messages, especially to the impressionable youth, potentially contributing to poor dietary choices and lifestyle habits.”
Writer Varsha Bagadia, a keen fitness buff herself, also refers to this as irresponsible behaviour, saying, “Impressionable minds are quick to follow their role models. They might not know the real person or the lifestyle of these celebrities and take their word as gospel truth. It’s unfair to mislead them, isn’t it?”
It should not be the allure of money that pushes celebs to promote unhealthy products, because most of them are established and wealthy in their own right. Is the reason then perhaps a perceived “coolness” factor or could it be worry that endorsements in general will dry up in the future if they become picky now? At the end of the day, their principles should matter above any lucrative deals. It is highly unlikely that Dhoni snacks on Lay’s chips amidst his gruelling fitness sessions – so why is he telling others to do so?
How to counter this issue
Gandhi believes they should be called out for promoting unhealthy products and there should be rules and regulations regarding promotions. “There should be some transparency about the nature of such ads so that people can evaluate them.”
Dr Patil recommends following a multi-pronged approach that includes encouraging celebs to endorse healthier alternatives that align with their image; implementing stricter regulations on such endorsements; and fostering collaborations with those influencers who do promote wellness. Bagadia suggests, “Giving disclaimers wherever possible could be a good move. Campaign designers could avoid featuring children in such advertisements to dampen the relativity factor.”
Overall, one hopes that celebrities wake up to the reality of the situation and learn to refuse endorsements of potentially harmful products like tobacco or alcohol.
(The author writes on lifestyle for various publications)
