Yesterday I looked at one of the local wine shops while riding my scooter and surprised to find the shop decorated with a string of pamphlets featuring Telugu movie hero Nagarjuna. A short pause and a closer look later, figured out that the material is based on promos of his latest Telugu movie Don. The movie is sponsored by a soda/water brand, which is incidentally a wine/beer brand too.
Now let us look at the repercussions of such advertising practices. This wine shop is in the midst of a busy street leading to a lot of educational institutions. Needless to say, Nagarjuna is a hero who has popularity and following amongst teenagers to old people alike. Featuring him predominantly on a wine shop for a much hyped movie of recent times, especially during the holiday season, is going to have a considerable impact on teenagers. I am sure the hero has no direct involvement in this (it is usually the producer of the movie who sells the sponsorship rights) and everything here is legally correct, people involved should think about ethical correctness. I am sure the hero has enough influence to ensure that these kind of things don’t happen for his future movies.
BTW, I am not quoting the water/soda/liquor brand here to avoid additional publicity for them.