Pratishtha Malhotra takes a look at actors who have defied all norms and endorsed condom brands without the fear of backlash!
Back in the ’90s when Pooja Bedi steamed it up to tell the world that condoms were pleasure and not just birth control, conservatives went blue in the face. The sexy Kama Sutra commercial, which featured Pooja with Marc Robinson under a shower, got into hot water as it went on to be banned. Pity. Not much has changed decades later, when a senior leader of Communist Party Of India blamed Sunny Leone and her contraceptives advertisement for the rising rape cases in India. When all sensible folk came down on him like a ton of bricks, he ungracefully muttered, “I apologise but I don’t stand for such ads.”
And then there’s Ranveer Singh who took ‘such ads’ and gave them a whole new spin altogether. Singing and dancing in the commercial, he lost his virginity, so to speak, in the ad world and how! “I had this idea and I told my people to contact Durex. I knew it was a big risk. Either I am going to get two thumbs up or a slap.” It was, needless to add, the former. In fact, the ad film went on to become the most successful commercial of the year. Far from shaming either the actor or the cause, it was loved and accepted wholeheartedly.
“I realised that the kind of ads that we have for condoms are very provocative in nature and that shouldn’t be the only prevailing definition of sex,” Ranveer had explained. “Someone needs to point it out or people will keep treating it as taboo.” That someone was him. Singh is one of those guys who like to say things as they are, minus sugar-coating. Largely devoid of inhibition, he doesn’t hesitate to share most ‘private’ things about his life, be it even his sexual experiences that started at the age of 12. He confesses that it was only curiously that led to sex at such a young age.
Ranveer felt strongly about promoting condoms as a product in a way that it was not being showcased all these years. As for people who still think condoms are a big deal, go watch the commercial. You’ll probably be converted, as you sing, “I love it! This feeling, is crazy. Ye kya nasha hai. Zalim zamana ka hey, mo-habbat ek saza hai!”
…And if sceptics still exist, Bachchan will wipe away any latent misgivings. The septua-genarian has been signed on by the Health Ministry to feature in an ad film and other creatives, to promote use of contraceptives. Don’t expect your average boring Nirodh-style ad – with flavoured condoms and other value-added contraceptives for both men and women, the campaign could just be what India needs to slash the birth rate. When Bachchan tells you something, you invariably listen!
