Indian ads are mini bursts of creativity that hugely impact our buying decisions. But when they cross the thin line between what is sensitive and creative, they cause a stir. And the same happened with the latest ad campaign of Zomato, #KachraBhiKhelega.
Zomato released an ad on World Environment Day. It was titled ‘Zomato recycles Kachra feat. Kachra as Kachra.’ It featured Kachra, a supporting character from Aamir Khan’s 2001 film Lagaan. In the ad, Kachra represented recycled daily objects such as stools, lamps, and hand towels.
The makers aimed to deliver a simple message that Zomato has reduced the burden of plastic waste on Earth by recycling packaging materials i.e Kachra since 2022. However, the concept did not sit well with the social media users as Kachra meant ‘waste’, and they showed the character “Kachra” to represent recycled garbage. They were angry for reducing a person’s value to that of ‘waste’.
The netizens called out Zomato for its insensitivity and casteist overtones. They questioned creative directors’ understanding of the social and cultural conditions of the country.
Usually, I’m a big fan of Zomato’s marketing, mostly done in-house. But their new ad film, made for World Environment Day, made for an uncomfortable watch, at least for me – your mileage may vary.
I understand the intent: to use the ‘Kachra’ character from Lagaan for his name 1/5 pic.twitter.com/WmoYYS4grg— Karthik 🇮🇳 (@beastoftraal) June 6, 2023
How dare @zomato have the audacity to create an ad with the most casteist Dalit character Kachra & literally reduce him to being trash in the name of environmentalism? SC/ST act must be filed against the makers of this ad along with caste sensitization & representation at Zomato pic.twitter.com/s1JQhQFbII
— Sankul Sonawane (@Sankul333) June 8, 2023
The Zomato ad with Kachra from “Lagaan” is unacceptable in its ignorance. To use a Dalit character and show him as a stand-in for furniture (!) in a country where as recently as 2022 a Dalit child was killed for drinking water from a pot meant for upper-castes, is just egregious.
— Maanvi (@Maanvi2501) June 8, 2023
Our #50WordEdit on Zomato’s “Kachra” ad pic.twitter.com/wvvNoW99RO
— Shekhar Gupta (@ShekharGupta) June 8, 2023
The massive online backlash forced the brand to withdraw the ad.
Zomato also offered a public apology on Twitter.
On world environment day, our intent was to spread awareness about the potential of plastic waste and benefits of recycling in a humorous way.
Unintentionally, we may have hurt the sentiments of certain communities and individuals. We have taken down the video.
— zomato (@zomato) June 8, 2023
It’s good to know that Zomato recycles all the plastic utilized while delivering food. But, they should know they can spice up the brand message without being a social media hot potato.