This was something controversial guru Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurved could not easily soap over in court.
In an ongoing courtroom tussle between Patanjali Ayurved and Hindustan Unilever (HUL), the latter has obtained an ad interim injunction against a Patanjali soap advertisement which allegedly belittles HUL's soap brands.
The Bombay High Court has directed Patanjali Ayurved to stop airing the said advertisement till the next date of hearing. The court will hear the matter on September 18, The Times of India reported.
"We confirm that the Bombay high court has granted ad interim injunction to the advertisement that was being aired by Patanjali Ayurved. Since the matter is sub judice, we will not be able to offer any further comments," a HUL spokesperson told TOI.
Since September 2, Patanjali has been airing the advertisement, which takes the names of leading brands like Lux, Pears, Lifebuoy and Dove, indirectly telling consumers to reject "chemical-based soaps", and urging them to adopt natural ones.
"Filmstars ke chemical bhare sabun na lagao" ("Don't use chemical-based soaps of filmstars"). The advertisement similarly refers to HUL's other soap brands like Pears — 'Tears' badhaye fears" ("Tears increase your fears"), and Lifebuoy with "Lifejoy na lao near" ("Don't bring Lifejoy near you"), the soap advertisement content revealed.
Since its inception, Patanjali is cashing in on the "natural" or ayurvedic aura it has built around its FMCG products. The company has resorted to aggressive advertising to grab a bigger market share in the FMCG segment.
In June, Patanjali Ayurved was asked to recall six of its medical products from Nepal by the country's Department of Drug Administration. The department, which functions under the Ministry of Health, found the products to be of "substandard quality".
The company has launched a frontal attack on almost all the leading FMCG brands in the toothpaste, hair oil, edible oil and soap segments through a slew of advertisements, which indirectly compare its products with that of its rivals, TOI reported.
Patanjali Ayurved has emerged as No. 2 advertiser in India behind HUL. It took the second spot in the list of top 10 brands, pushing Vodafone behind, according to data released for the week January 21-27, 2017 by television audience measurement agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC).
Yoga guru Baba Ramdev's Patanjali recently announced a clothes sale in an attempt to boost business. At a time when the Indian government is advocating a digital economy, the firm has also tied up with social media giants like Google and Facebook to market the brand on a digital platform.
