Vimal Elaichi ad row: Tukaram Mundhe says celebrities not exempt from law
Maharashtra FDA chief Tukaram Mundhe says celebrities endorsing Vimal Elaichi cannot escape legal accountability as one actor has yet to respond to a notice
The controversy over the Vimal Elaichi advertisement is back in the headlines. Tukaram Mundhe, commissioner of Maharashtra's Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has made clear that celebrities involved in the case will get no special exemption from the law. Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff have already been sent show-cause notices, and further legal proceedings in the matter are now under way.
In an interview to NDTV, Mundhe spoke about the responsibility of celebrities in advertisements. He said that no matter how big a celebrity someone is, they too bear responsibility when they promote a product through an advertisement, and that following legal rules is necessary for anyone acting as an endorser.
The Maharashtra FDA had sent show-cause notices to Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff on August 11, 2026. The FDA had asked whether the Vimal Elaichi advertisement amounted to indirect or surrogate promotion of a pan masala product banned in Maharashtra.
The FDA's notice said that the way the "Vimal Elaichi" product is presented in the advertisement, along with the associations carried by the "Vimal" brand, appears at first glance to be linked to a pan masala brand. Those concerned were asked to respond within 15 days.
The sale of gutkha and pan masala is banned in Maharashtra. This is why the FDA is watching to see whether the banned product is being promoted directly or indirectly. The FDA alleges that the Vimal Elaichi advertisement amounts to surrogate promotion of the banned pan masala product, though the matter is still going through legal and administrative process.
According to the latest information, two of the three actors have responded to the FDA's show-cause notice. But one actor has not responded yet, Mundhe said. Because of this, adjudication and prosecution proceedings against that actor have been taken forward.
Mundhe placed particular emphasis on the responsibility of advertisers in the case. He said being a celebrity does not put anyone outside the ambit of the law, and that advertisers bear responsibility for properly verifying a product and its claims before featuring in an advertisement for it.
Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court has also declined to intervene in a related petition, clearing the way for the Maharashtra FDA's action to proceed. Attention now turns to the direction the legal proceedings in the Vimal Elaichi advertisement case take next.
