Ranveer Singh in a still from the advertisement.
Actor Ranveer Singh just gave animal rights group PETA India a major burn by 'beating up' a fake shark in an advertisement for an innerwear brand.
Ranveer, who has a rep to protect as Bollywood's resident madcap, does a bunch of hilarious things in the ad and ends by rescuing a young woman from a shark that was about to eat her. The shark is clearly fake and no matter what Bollywood-bestowed super powers Ranveer might have acquired, punching a real shark's lights out with his bare hands is not one of them. PETA, however, appears to have taken it seriously and is not pleased.
In fact, they made a statement on behalf of all sharks in danger of being assaulted by Ranveer, complaining that "By recruiting Ranveer Singh, Rupa Frontline is desperately trying to attract youth, but nothing shows how utterly out of touch with youngsters the company actually is than its depiction of cruelty to animals in its advertisement. There is nothing sexy about pretending to beat up an animal, and nothing that may disgust a girl more.
"PETA will be writing to Rupa Frontline and Ranveer Singh to share our concerns on behalf of sharks and today's socially aware youth," Poorva Joshipura, PETA India CEO, said in the statement.
The last time that Bollywood fell foul of PETA was when it objected to the bull run scene in 2011 film
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.
PETA's own advertisements, some featuring Hitler and referencing the Ku Klax Klan, have often been criticized as 'offensive' and accused of killing the message.
Watch Ranveer Singh in the advertisement: