Bombay Shaving Company’s ad backfires amid support for UP board topper Prachi Nigam
Bombay Shaving Company's ad backfires amid support for UP board topper Prachi Nigam
Bombay Shaving Company’s attempt to support UP Board topper Prachi Nigam backfired when their advertisement received criticism.
CEO Shantanu Deshpande shared the ad on LinkedIn, praising his team for the “heartfelt message” they conveyed. He expressed shock at the hate directed towards Prachi due to her facial hair and emphasized their support for her.
The ad, featuring the text “It was shocking to see the amount of hate targeted at a teenage girl who had topped an exam because of her facial hair. Our simple message to this amazing young woman with such a bright future. Love to see my team ooze class. No opportunistic sale, QR code, nothing. Just a heartfelt message to a fellow Bae,” he wrote.
The ad text reads, “Dear Prachi, they’re trolling your hair today, they’ll applaud your AIR tomorrow”. A tagline follows it, “We hope you never get bullied into using our razor”,
aimed to uplift Prachi amidst the bullying she faced.
Despite their intentions, the ad drew criticism, with people slamming it for various reasons.
Since being shared about seven hours ago, the post has gone viral, with many calling it “absurd” or “disgusting”. X users also spoke against the ad and expressed unhappiness over it.
How did social media users react to the ad?
“This is shocking and in very bad taste. Bombay Shaving Company needs better brand advisors,” posted an X user.
Another expressed, “Hey Shantanu, this is absolutely absurd. Nothing cool about this ad, and it’s so unfortunate that even companies with reputations don’t want to leave a chance of leveraging an unfortunate incident”.
A third person joined, “Distasteful. Not every situation should be dragged for your own branding.
Prachi Nigam, who topped Class 10 with 591/600 marks, became the target of online bullying due to her facial hair. Despite the negativity, many came out in support of Prachi, congratulating her on her achievements. The ad by Bombay Shaving Company aimed to join the voices supporting Prachi but faced backlash instead.
