Maharashtra FDA Issued Show-Cause Notice To Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgan, And Tiger Shroff Over Vimal Ad

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued show-cause notices to Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgan, and Tiger Shroff for endorsement of Vimal Elaichi. The authority has alleged that it amounts to surrogate advertising for Vimal Pan Masala, a product prohibited in the state.

The Maharashtra FDA has stepped up action against the sale and promotion of tobacco and pan masala in Maharashtra, with the three actors now coming under the regulator’s scrutiny.

The notice seeks explaination from Khan, Devgan, and Shroff over their role in the advertisement. The FDA said the advertisment creates an association with the Vimal Pan Masala brand, and it could lead to indirect promotion as per the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006.

The notice states, “Upon examination of the said advertisement, it prima facie appears that the advertisement promotes the Vimal brand, which is mainly associated with Pan Masala, a product prohibited for manufacture, storage, transportation, distribution and sale in the State of Maharashtra for a period of one year, with effect from the date specified in the Prohibition Order dated the 13th July, 2026, issued by the Commissioner of Food Safety, Maharashtra State, under Section 30(2)(a) of the FSS Act, 2006.”

The authority stated that this marks the first time it has started examining surrogate advertising. In this case, the regulator said the advertisement’s presentation, dialogue, product, name, and market context raise a “serious question” over whether it constitutes indirect or surrogate promotion of a prohibted tabacco-related items.