Bombay Shaving Company Ad in Prachi Tyagi's support attracts strong criticism, charges of brand opportunism

Bombay Shaving Company's Unbelievably Bad Taste in Newsjacking

Prachi Nigam (Uttar Pradesh Board topper) was viciously trolled for her physical appearance, which has no connection to her academic achievements. 

Additionally, most media stories about the trolling Prachi Nigam faced, a minor, showed her face clearly

Where is the 'Chief Outrage Officer' when you need one? When your state's academic topper goes on record and wishes she scored less so she didn't have to face the scrutiny of the trolls, the entire country has lost as its brightest stars are told to shine less.

Bombay Shaving Company's mindless newsjacking 

In a classic example of mindless creative decision-making, Bombay Shaving Company jumped in with a full-page ad encouraging Prachi not to succumb to online pressure and use their razors to enhance her appearance. 

This rightly drew sharp criticism from netizens. 

Bombay Shaving Company does a full page ad for Prachi, The UP board topper, who was being trolled for facial hair.

Haven’t seen something this desperate.

This message goes to their own TG, not to the people who bullied her, hey pls remember to buy our razors while you shed a… pic.twitter.com/YWBDwgd6LU

— Gabbar (@GabbbarSingh) April 27, 2024

This is not the first time, the Bombay Shaving Company has put the proverbial foot in the mouth. The founder and chief executive of Bombay Shaving Company, Shantanu Deshpande, in August 2022, said youngsters need to work 18 hours a day in the first few years of their career. 

Deshpande memorably said, "Don't do random rona-dhona. Take it on the chin and be relentless. You will be way better for it,". He also said its too early to think about work-life balance at the start of your career, a sharp contrast to what Gen Z wants.

Shoeb is the director of brand content at Ideosphere Consulting. He loves helping brands and business leaders articulate their value better.