When brands and Bollywood parted ways

Sportswear brand Adidas recently announced the termination of its association with American rapper and producer Ye formerly known as Kanye West, after he made anti-semitic comments on the internet. As part of the decision, the company will stop the production of Yeezy, which is a collab between the brand and West. 

On Tuesday, October 25, 2022, in an official statement, the company said, “Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech. Ye’s recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness.” 

It added, “After a thorough review, the company has taken the decision to terminate the partnership with Ye immediately, end production of Yeezy branded products and stop all payments to Ye and his companies. adidas will stop the Adidas Yeezy business with immediate effect,” 

Adidas, which has its own dubious history with the Nazis, has incurred a short-term negative impact of up to €250 million on the company’s net income in 2022 given the high seasonality of the fourth quarter. 

This came after Ye’s tweet on October 8, 2022: 

Unsurprisingly, his comments led to his suspension from Twitter as well as Instagram. The singer has also been terminated from other brands like French fashion house Balenciaga, Vogue, Gap, among others have cut ties with him. 

As the axe falls from all directions, Ye was knocked off his billionaire pedestal and has incurred a significant reduction in his net worth. But he isn't the only one. Closer home, there have been numerous instances of Indian celebs and brands parting ways. 

Akshay Kumar

In a press conference back in 2018, Akshay Kumar spoke against Tobacco and Gutka endorsement and said that he has been offered many endorsement deals but he has rejected them because he does not want to endorse such habits. 

In April 2022, he got thrashed by the internet for endorsing the Pan Masala brand Vimal with Shah Rukh Khan and Ajay Devgn. Fans across the internet were tweeting and talking against Kumar for not practising what he preached.

Kumar issued a public apology and terminated the contract with the brand. He tweeted:

Shah Rukh Khan

In 2009, PepsiCo terminated its contract or rather didn't renew its contract with King Khan as the company was trying to reposition itself with the ‘Youngistan’ campaign having Ranbir Kapoor and others on board.  

In 2012, Shah Rukh Khan was again boycotted by many brands because of his fight with the officials at the Wankhede Stadium, leading him to get banned from the venue for a span of five years. 

Last year, BYJU’s paused its ad campaign with SRK due to the  Aryan Khan drug scandal. But soon, the company resumed the campaign and SRK had levelled up his brand image more a Cadbury’s brand endorsement deal.

Priyanka Chopra 

In 2018, Priyanka Chopra terminated her contact with the jewellery brand Nirav Modi Jewels citing financial fraud done by the owner, Nirav Modi. As Modi was under suspicion and later found guilty of fraud with Punjab National Bank for over Rs. 11,680 crores. 

Amitabh Bachchan

On the occasion of his 79th Birthday, Megastar Amitabh Bachchan terminated his partnership with pan masala brand Kamla Pasand. A statement from his office clarified that the actor wasn’t aware that the ad comes under surrogate ads and he would like the brand to discontinue the airing of the same. But the brand continued airing the same.