MAM
Tata Chemicals, HUL in ad row
MUMBAI: Tata Chemicals has said that advertising industry watchdog, ASCI, has upheld its complaint against leaflets circulated by Hindustan Unilever (HUL), said to be denigrating its water purifier brand Tata Swach.
“Violating the professional code of business, Pureit, the water
purifier brand from Hindustan Unilever, had been misleading consumers through persistent smear campaigns against Tata Swach, the water purifier from the house of Tatas,” the communiqué said.
The company said the Advertising Standard Council of India (ASCI) through Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) directed HUL to pull out leaflets from the market.
HUL retaliated by saying, “Tata Swach makes the ambiguous claim of ‘Tested for bacteria as per US EPA standards’ which can mislead consumers to believe that Tata Swach meets US EPA standards on safe drinking water.”
Suggesting a ‘safety challenge’ in Tata Swach, the leaflets claimed that Tata Swach does not protect against viruses and bacteria; neither does it have auto shut-off, nor has a sales and service network. Moreover, among other claims, the leaftet said that Tata Swach’s per-litre running cost is higher than PureIt.
“The CCC considered the technical data submitted by Tata Swach and concluded that the statement made in the leaflet circulated by Pureit denigrates Tata Swach,” Tata said.
Since launching Pureit in 2008, HUL has been openly challenging rivals and consumers that its water purifier is one of a kind in offering matchless germkill water protection.
It challenges to give away Rs 100 million to any consumer who finds any other domestic water purifier meeting the safety standards of Pureit.
“Pureit meets the stringent US EPA standards for germ kill and we have made the various laboratory test results available for consumers to access easily and at all times on the Pureit website. We wish to also clarify that the promotional leaflets of Pureit against which the complaint has been made are not in use since July 2010,” HUL’s
statement added.
It further added: “We wish to also clarify that the promotional leaflets of Pureit against which the complaint has been made are not in use since July 2010.”
HUL exports the Pureit brand to markets such as Indonesia, Mexico, Brazil and Bangladesh.
MAM
VML India lands two finalist spots at Cairns Hatchlings 2026
The Mumbai agency is back in Australia with two teams, a UN brief and 24 hours to impress
MUMBAI: VML India is heading to Australia again. The Mumbai-based creative agency has secured two finalist spots at the Cairns Hatchlings 2026 competition, one in the Audio category and one in Design, making it the only Indian agency to have reached the finals in both editions of the contest since its launch in 2025.
Four people will make the trip. Senior copywriter Shilpi Dey and senior art director Raj Thakkar will compete in Audio. Art directors Shabbir and Shruti Negi will go head-to-head with the world’s best in Design. The finals take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 13th May, culminating in an awards ceremony on 15th May.
The work that got them there is worth examining. For the Audio category, Dey and Thakkar tackled a brief for LIVE LIKE MMAD with a campaign called Inner Voice, Interrupted. Using spatial audio techniques, the campaign recreates the overwhelming self-doubt that descends after a long workday, physically panning negative thoughts left and right before cutting the noise entirely to reveal a confident inner voice. Strategically targeted at commuters via Spotify during evening rush hours, the campaign reframes the hours after work as an opportunity for personal growth and charitable action.
For the Design category, Shabbir and Negi worked on a brief for Canteen’s Bandanna Day, a campaign highlighting how cancer pushes teenagers out of their own defining moments. Using a pixelated design language to create stark contrast between a blurred world of isolation and a focused world of connection, the campaign, titled The Flipside of Cancer, shows teenagers fading into the background of birthdays, skateparks and school proms. As a Canteen bandanna appears, the blur flips and the teenager snaps back into sharp focus.
Kalpesh Patankar, group chief creative officer of VML India, made no attempt to disguise his satisfaction. “We are immensely proud to see our teams consistently excel on the Cairns Hatchlings platform since its inception,” he said. “They have masterfully tackled challenging briefs across diverse categories, demonstrating both layered storytelling and a unique creative approach. This exceptional teamwork is truly inspiring.”
Dey and Thakkar, returning to the finals after last year’s run, were candid about the demands of the audio medium. “It’s one of the most demanding mediums, where we only have a few seconds to capture a listener’s world with sound alone, so absolute clarity is essential,” they said. “The true measure of creative work is its ability to create positive change, and our audio submission was made to help those who need it most while encouraging people to silence the inner voices that hold them back.”
Shabbir and Negi, competing in Design for the first time, described the experience as “a completely different beast.” “We see it as an opportunity to showcase our expertise, raise the bar, and challenge ourselves in new ways, while also learning from creative minds from across the globe,” they said.
In Australia, the four finalists will face a live 24-hour brief from the United Nations before presenting in a live pitch session. Twenty-four hours, one brief, one shot. VML India has been here before. It knows exactly what is at stake.
