Online food delivery company Zomato apologised and also withdrew the advertisement on ‘Mahakal ki Thali’ after priests of Ujjain Mahakaleshwar temple raised objection to the content.
The advertisement featuring Hrithik Roshan was on the delievery of food from Mahakal restuarant. In the ad, the actor was seen saying that “I have made up my mind for a plate. If you are in Ujjain, you have asked for it from Mahakal.”
After this ad, Mahakaleshwar temple priest Mahesh said, “Mahakaal is god whom we worship. Mahakaal is not a servant and doesn’t deliver food. The company has made misleading publicity about the Mahakal temple in its advertisement. Hindu society is tolerant, it is never violent. Had there been another community, he would have set such a company on fire.”
Hindu Jagrati Manch urged people to boycott zomato.
In a tweet, Zomato said that this advertisement is part of their ongoing nationwide campaign adding that the ad is promoting the most talked about menu of local food outlets.
“In the advertisement, ordering the plate from Mahakal was meant from the famous Mahakal restaurant of the city and not from the temple of Lord Mahakaleshwar. The advertisement is based on AI i.e. Artificial Intelligence, in which the consumer hears the name of the main restaurant of his own city,” said the tweet.
“We wholeheartedly respect the sentiments of the people of Ujjain. This ad has been disabled. It was not our intention to hurt anyone’s sentiments and we sincerely apologise for the same,” the company said.
{{/usCountry}}“We wholeheartedly respect the sentiments of the people of Ujjain. This ad has been disabled. It was not our intention to hurt anyone’s sentiments and we sincerely apologise for the same,” the company said.
{{/usCountry}}Madhya Pradesh home minister Narottam Mishra had directed Ujjain superintendent of police (SP) to investigate the matter.