Kenwood apologises for leaked ad that turned domestic abuse into a punchline
We were enjoying the new series of commercials Kenwood released with Nawazuddin Siddiqui...until this one came along.
Kenwood Pakistan recently got Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Aisha Khan on board for their latest ad series promoting their electronics. The two actors play a married couple and so far it seemed adorable.
Also read: Nawazuddin Siddiqui really upsets Aisha Khan in latest TVC and it's a lesson to all husbands
However, the new ad doing the rounds on social media (not from Kenwood Pakistan's official social media accounts) show Nawazuddin's character with his friends ranting about a recent fight he'd had with the missus. Seems normal? Not quite. Nawazuddin goes on to brag about how his wife was giving him attitude so he gave her a "dhulayi" (read: beating) - complete with hand gestures.
Since then, Kenwood has issued an apology and explained that the ad was leaked prematurely. The company also admitted that their "judgment was flawed" and that they failed to consider the ad "in the light of view that many people have pointed out", i.e. misogyny and promotion of domestic violence.
The electronics company clarifies that while many people told them to disown the ad completely, they'd rather own up to their mistake and learn from it, in a disclaimer they posted on their Facebook page.
While we all stumble every now and then, it's refreshing to see a large organisation acknowledge their follies and hopefully, not repeat them.
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