ASCI UPHOLD COMPLAINTS AGAINST 132 AD CAMPIGNS

Advertising industry watchdog ASCI has upheld complaints against a large number of campaigns that included showing scantily clad children and dangerous driving. It upheld complaints against 132 campaigns in October including those of Procter & Gamble, Bajaj Auto, Hindustan Unilever, Tata Teleservices and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare. According to the Customer Complaints Council (CCC) of the Advertising Standard Council of India, education, health and personal care categories continued to lead with the highest number of complaints for misleading ads during the month. The watchdog had upheld a complain against Bajaj Auto, where the two wheeler manufacturer in a TV Commercial (TVC) of Bajaj Discover has shown riders dangerously entering a small gap between two trailer trucks. "It is a wrong driving practice to overtake another vehicle on the left side. It is potentially risky to enter between two vehicles. The CCC concluded that the actions depicted in the TVC were dangerous and contravened the Guidelines on Advertisements for Automotive Vehicles," the regulator said. ASCI also found a TVC by Tata Teleservices violating the norms where the telecom operator had depicted kids dancing in their bare minimums in one of the ads of Tata Docomo. CCC had concluded that some frames in the TVC showing 'scantily clad children' objectify a child's body, which is likely in the light of generally prevailing standards of decency and propriety, to cause grave offence. The watchdog also pulled up Marico Ltd, wherein an ad of Saffola Total had claimed to have double ratio of 2 to 1 in antioxidants vs olive oil, claiming benefits for heart. The CCC concluded it to be misleading. Similarly, it also upheld two complaints against FMCG major Hindustan Unilever. In one of its print ad of Fair and Lovely Fairness Cream, FMCG firm had claimed that its advanced pink formula targets melanin and prevents skin from becoming darker, while in the ad of its cleaner Domex Zero Stain it had claimed zero stain. The CCC also upheld complaints against Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care Ltd, Sun Laboratories, Dabur, LÓreal India, Kent Ro System and Gujarat Co-operative Milk Federation - which markets under brand Amul. In health and personal care category, CCC found that claims in 92 different advertisers had violated guidelines.