MAM
Law college apologises for Suits vs Jolly LLB 2 ad
NEW DELHI: Last week, readers came across a curious ad on the front page of The Times of India’s Bhopal edition. The print advert by Indore Institute of Law drew a comparison between two fictional characters Harvey Specter from American TV series Suits and Akshay Kumar from Jolly LLB. It bore the caption that an aspiring lawyer could be either – “Choice is yours.”
The picture started doing the rounds on social media platforms and netizens were quick to slam the college’s perceived elitist stance behind the ad. Others accused the institute of denigrating the “dignity of Indian lawyers.” Social media pundits also questioned whether the college had obtained permission from the original creators before running the campaign. A fair few wondered why the institute chose fictional characters instead of its own alumni or famous practitioners of law in the real world.
The overall impression in certain sections of social media was that the ad was in poor taste and problematic; and not the inspired idea that the advertisers imagined it to be.
Facing flak, the law college later issued an apology saying, “We assure everyone that it was absolutely not our intention to offend anyone or defame any section of the legal profession.”
But the damage was already done and the ad-makers were brutally trolled for their creative sense.
Please find our clarification regarding our advertisement published on 15/10/2020. We would like to make clear the…
Posted by Indore Institute of Law on Thursday, 15 October 2020
Being a Law Institute, the college should have known better than to draw such a superfluous comparison, besides flagrantly violating the Intellectual Property and Trademark code on top of that. As per rules, no agency or brand can use any celebrity or work of any other firm without their approval, and if it has done so then the company has to pay the penalty under the Copyright Act. However, if the ad is published on social media, not many will raise the question of ethics.
Using others’ IP in an advertisement is not uncommon, but this case has come into the limelight because the brand chose the ATL medium. Had the flyer had been limited to social media, it probably wouldn't have caused such a ruckus.
ASCI secretary-general Manisha Kapoor shared that the council has not received any complaint in this regard as of now.
Explaining the due process of dealing with violations, Kapoor said: “The advertiser will be asked to furnish the required permissions and an independent consumer complaints council will duly examine the objections and the advertiser’s response, and ascertain if the ASCI code has been violated. The advertiser will be asked to modify or withdraw the advertisement in question if it is found violating the ASCI code.”
ASCI seeks to ensure that advertisements conform to its code for self-regulation, which requires advertisements to be legal, decent, honest, and truthful and not hazardous or harmful while observing fairness in competition. The code also describes that the ad should not be derogatory to competition without any plagiarism. It should not use indiscriminately for the promotion of products, hazardous or harmful to society or to individuals.
Brands
Faber-Castell India appoints Sunaina Haldar as director – marketing
With stints at Tata, SleepyCat and ADF Foods under her belt, Haldar is primed to redraw Faber-Castell’s brand story
MUMBAI: Faber-Castell India has poached Sunaina Haldar from ADF Foods, appointing her director – marketing as the German stationery brand looks to muscle up in a category that is rapidly reinventing itself around creativity and self-expression.
Haldar hit the ground running. “My first couple of weeks have been incredibly energising, understanding consumers, visiting markets, engaging with retailers and immersing myself into the world of Faber-Castell Group,” she said.
She arrives with considerable firepower. At ADF Foods, Haldar ran marketing across India and international markets for a portfolio spanning Ashoka, Aeroplane, Camel and ADF Soul. Before that, she was vice-president – marketing at direct-to-consumer mattress brand SleepyCat, where she helmed brand, content and performance marketing. Her résumé also includes a stint leading marketing, new product development and CRM for Tata SmartFoodz at Tata Consumer Products, no small proving ground.
Between corporate roles, Haldar also operated as a fractional CMO for early-stage startups, building marketing strategy and operational structures from scratch, a signal that she knows how to move fast with limited resources.
With 18 years straddling FMCG, D2C and the startup world, Haldar now takes the reins at a brand that has long owned the classroom but is clearly hungry for the living room. In a stationery market where the pencil has become a lifestyle statement, Faber-Castell has picked someone who knows exactly how to sell that story.
