New Delhi: A major controversy has erupted over the Karnataka Government’s signing actress Tamannaah Bhatia for iconic Mysore Sandal Soap. The actress has been signed up for a two-year period for the advertisement.
Tamanaanh, who works mostly in Telugu and Tamil movies has been signed up for a whopping Rs 6.2 crore. She has been chosen for the advertisement over the likes of other actresses like Pooja Hegde, Rashmika Mandanna, and Deepika Padukone. While a number of people have taken to social media to slam the move, the Kannada film industry too joined the move.
Minister defends Govt’s decision
Defending the government’s decision, Industry Minister MB Patil said the decision was a well-researched move. He added that the selection of a brand ambassador involves major deliberations. Film producer SA Chinne Gowda, while speaking to The New Indian Express said that there are several movie stars in Kannada too who have fan following across the country.
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Pointing out that it was the independent decision taken by the PSU board, the minister noted that there are various factors taken into account before such decisions are taken including social media presence. “We want to reach Rs 5,000 crore by 2030, for which we need good marketing. Tamannaah has an impressive digital reach with 2.8 crore followers,’’ the paper quoted him as saying further. said. It may be noted that in 2006, KSDL signed a contract with former India cricket captain MS Dhoni for two years. However, they reached court for a legal battle in which the KSDL lost.
Speaking to TNIE, film producer SA Chinne Gowda, who also served as President of the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC), said that Kannada cinema has the best actors and actresses who have pan-India appeal. “In spite of that, bringing in someone from outside Karnataka shows their disrespect to the language,’’ he said.
