VIP clarifies its viral advertisement is fake amid calls to boycott their products; files complaint

Asia's luggage manufacturer has become an unlikely victim of a video depicting an interfaith couple viral on social media with fraudulent use of its advertisement clips used in the alleged video accused of promoting “love-jihad” in Kerala under the guise of Eid wishes. The video purported to imply the idea that a girl undergoing interfaith marriage will end up in a suitcase with video of VIP Industries luggage.

VIP Industries has clarified that it has no connection with the creator of this ad and filed a police complaint against viral social media posts of purported love jihad videos with advertisements of their hot-selling Skybags ad film clippings.

The video posted on social media alleging that it glorified “love-jihad” had an unauthorised advertisement of VIP Industries brand Skybags implying that the company was promoting the conversion.

Boycott threats

Mumbai headquartered VIP Industries Limited has been at the receiving end of online abuses and boycott threats after the purported video allegedly showed “a Muslim man erasing the bindi of a Hindu woman,” which many claimed indicated her conversion to Islam had gone viral.

According to VIP Industries chairman Dilip Piramal the malicious video circulated on various social media platforms and microblogging sites unlawfully used VIP Industries and Sky Bags brand names to tarnish the image of the company, business, and brand.

“VIP Industries has filed multiple complaints with police in Mumbai and Kerala for inappropriate usage of VIP Trade name VIP and Sky Bags. A video purporting to be VIP Advertisement is outright fake and malicious circulated on social media platforms with the creator unlawfully using VIP Industries and Sky Bags brand names,” said Dilip Piramal.

The company in a press statement said, "We want to assure all our stakeholders that the company has NOT released this video and does not have any connection whatsoever with the person who has released this video. As a company, VIP Industries has taken the issue of fraudulent advertising seriously and we have filed multiple complaints with police in Mumbai and Kerala for inappropriate usage of VIP Trade names (VIP and Sky Bags). VIP has also requested Meta India (owners of Facebook and Instagram) to remove the video with immediate effect."

Recreation of scene from Sufiyum Sujatayum

The original video was posted on the Instagram account of Malayalam actor Vishnu Vijayan who portrays a Muslim man in the video wearing a skull cap. The creators of the viral video claimed that the video was made to recreate scenes from the film Sufiyum Sujatayum and its songs, and was not intended to promote “love-jihad”.