Bollywood actors Tiger Shroff, Ajay Devgn, and Shah Rukh Khan have run afoul of the law after they appeared in a commercial for the Pan Masala brand.
Notices inviting the three performers and the chairman of JB Industries, the company that makes the Pan Masala brand, to appear on March 19, 2025, have been sent by the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum in Jaipur. The Bollywood celebrities have reportedly received notifications about a purportedly deceptive commercial that asserts that saffron is present in every grain of pan masala, according to a Times of India story.
“Dane dane mein hai kesar ka dum” (each grain has the strength of saffron) is the slogan used in the advertisement. After hearing a complaint from Yogendra Singh Badiyal, a resident of Jaipur, consumer forum chairwoman Gyarsilal Meena and member Hemlata Agarwal gave the ruling.
The petitioner claimed in the case that the advertising, which starred Tiger Shroff, Ajay Devgn, and Shah Rukh Khan, misrepresented the presence of saffron in the pan masala. The petitioner noted that a pan masala packet containing tobacco costs only Rs 5 but saffron costs almost Rs 4 lakh per kilogramme.
According to the petitioner, “in such a scenario, forget about adding saffron; even its fragrance cannot be included,” the Times of India said. As per the complainant, the purpose of the “misleading” advertisement was to increase sales of the pan masala and tobacco combination, which would increase the manufacturer’s earnings.
The actors were also charged in the case with “spreading false propaganda” by supporting the assertion that saffron is present in all grains. It further said that while the producer is making crores from the business, the general public is endangering their health and “inviting” ailments like cancer by eating tobacco and pan masala together.
“In such a situation, the advertisement deliberately claims to contain saffron to mislead the public,” the complainant claimed. Badiyal has demanded an immediate end to the deceptive ads and urged for legal action against the perpetrators for disseminating “disinformation.”