Katrina Kaif and Hrithik Roshan's latest advertisement for Zomato has landed in a hot soup. The advertisement is being slammed by a certain section for glorifying the poor conditions of gig workers.
Many have called out how extreme are the working conditions for such gig workers. The advertisement divided social media into a battlefield. While one section loved the ad, it received massive backlash from another section.
What does the advertisement show?
In the first ad, Hrithik Roshan receives a food delivery through Zomato. Hrithik asks him to wait for a selfie but the delivery executive receives another delivery order in the meantime. This leads to him letting the chance of getting a selfie with Hrithik pass as he heads to continue his job.
The next ad features Katrina Kaif opening the door for the delivery executive. She asks him to wait for a piece of the cake he delivered but he again gets another notification for delivery and has to forgo the cake piece.
The ads were run with the tagline of "Har customer hai star" (Every customer is a star). Both the ads have been heavily slammed for being tone-deaf and glorifying the poor working conditions of the delivery executives. Netizens also called out the brand for paying bombs to celebrities for advertisement and a meager amount to the executives.
Zomato's statement
Now, Zomato has issued a statement on the whole controversy. It has claimed that the ads were meant to "make delivery partner hero of the ad" and highlight how one should "talk respectfully" to them. It further says that the goal was to "raise dignity associated with delivery partner's job" and reiterate that "every customer is a star".
The other side of the story... pic.twitter.com/hNRj6TpK1X
— zomato (@zomato) August 30, 2021
It further says that the ads were conceptualised six months ago when there was no chatter around gig workers.
