The big brands have dropped the big guys. Actors Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar, Deepika Padukone and Chitrangda Singh have all been laid off big-ticket advertisements, and fresh faces have stolen the show.
Salman, who was the brand ambassador for soft drink brand Mountain Dew, has been evicted from their 5-crore campaign. “This is to confirm the end of our contract with Salman khan as our brand ambassador,” the spokesperson of the brand was quoted as saying last week.
Beauty label Neutrogena showed the door to its face Deepika Padukone. “We have not renewed the contract with her,” said the brand’s Manoj Gadgil, without revealing the reasons for dropping the actor who was associated with the brand for two years.
The biggest blow however comes for Akshay Kumar, who has been dropped as ambassador for Thums Up, which he loyally endorsed for over eight years. The brand is believed to have refused to renew his contract after seeing his flop Bollywood phase, and replaced him with Telugu star Mahesh Babu. But they’ve reportedly had a change of mind after Akki’s hit Housefull 2, and are contemplating getting him back.
Also, Chitrangda Singh was replaced by Prachi Desai in the Taj Mahal tea commercial. While the actors chose not to comment, ad gurus say that the trend reflects the slow death of hero worship. “Big stars don’t always result in big sales, so brands don’t want to pay such huge money,” says Manish Porwal of celebrity talent management firm, Alchemist. Shailendra Singh of Percept communications says, “Brands want to bring back youth, as people want fresh faces.” Expert Alyque Padamsee says the theory is simple — “When a brand feels that a particular star is not delivering sales, they drop him.”
Also, Chitrangda Singh was replaced by Prachi Desai in the Taj Mahal tea commercial. While the actors chose not to comment, ad gurus say that the trend reflects the slow death of hero worship. “Big stars don’t always result in big sales, so brands don’t want to pay such huge money,” says Manish Porwal of celebrity talent management firm, Alchemist. Shailendra Singh of Percept communications says, “Brands want to bring back youth, as people want fresh faces.” Expert Alyque Padamsee says the theory is simple — “When a brand feels that a particular star is not delivering sales, they drop him.”
Akshay Kumar
Dropped from:
Thums Up (loses Rs 3cr)*
Deepika Padukone
Dropped from:
Neutrogena (loses Rs 2.5cr)
Salman khan
Dropped from:
Mountain Dew (loses Rs 5crore)
Chitrangda Singh
Dropped from:
Taj Mahal tea (loses Rs 1.5cr)
Still in demand...
Aamir Khan
Rs 7-8cr per deal
Brands:
Tata Sky, Samsung, Citizen, Incredible India
Katrina Kaif
Rs 4cr per deal
Brands:
Slice, Olay, Pantene, Veet, Titan, Panasonic, Gitanjali etc
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