Online food delivery firm Zomato ran an ad campaign titled ‘Mann kiya, Zomato kiya’ featuring Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan. In this new advertisement the actor is found saying, “Thali ka mann kia, Ujjain mein hai, toh Mahakal se manga Lia.” It faced opposition from the priests of Mahakal temple and demanded for withdrawal.
In Zomato’s new ad campaign we see Hrithik Roshan ordering ‘thali’ from ‘Mahakal’ out of cravings and hunger. Few priests of the Mahakal Temple in Ujjain protested against the campaign claiming it to hurt Hindu sentiments. The Mahakal temple in Ujjain, one of the twelve ‘Jyotirlingas’ is a popular pilgrimage site for the Hindus.
Adding to the protest, the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti called for boycotting Zomato and tweeted, “Zomato insults Mahakal. In an ad Hrithik says ‘Thali Khane ka mann tha Mahakal se mangaa liya’. Zomato shouldn’t make the mistake of thinking that Mahakal’s Prasad served in temples with devotion to devotees is the same as the food they serve when it’s ordered! Boycott Zomato.”
Following the protest Zomato issued a statement clarifying that Mahakal referred in the ad is actually the ‘Mahakal restaurant’, one of their high order volume restaurant partners in Ujjain and not the revered Shree Mahakaleswas Temple. They also added, “We deeply respect the sentiments of the people of Ujjain and the ad in question is no longer running. We offer our sincerest apologies, for the intent here was never to hurt anyone’s beliefs and sentiments.”