'Was Supposed To Be Positive': Aditya Lakhia AKA Lagaan's Kachra On Highly Criticised Zomato Ad

It was supposed to be a positive concept but it backfired.

This is what Aditya Lakhia, the actor who played Kachra in Aamir Khan's Lagaan has to say about reprising his role in the Zomato advertisement titled Kachra Bhi Khelega.

As soon as the ad was dropped, it received massive backlash for dehumanisation of a Dalit character and normalising casteism.

#Kachra from #Lagaan was one of the most dehumanised voiceless depictions of Dalits ever in cinema. @zomato has used the same character and made a repulsive #casteist commercial. A human stool? Are you serious? Extremely insensitive! https://t.co/xWUpDatUvD

¡ª Neeraj Ghaywan (@ghaywan) June 8, 2023

After massive backlash, the Indian multinational restaurant aggregator and food delivery company withdrew the advertisement and issued an apology.

Now, actor Aditya Lakhia who essayed the role Kachra has explained it was supposed to be a positive concept.

Twitter

"It was supposed to be a positive concept, the way we all looked at it was Kachra promoting anti-plastic and to recycle garbage. But it took another turn. It became controversial so now it¡¯s banned," he was quoted as saying by News 18.

He added that nobody anticipated this. "I would also say that if it has hurt a section of people and if an apology is required then I¡¯ll give it. As an actor, what can I say."

For the uninitiated, in Lagaan, Kachra was a polio-affected Dalit character who faced discrimination from other people in the film.

Twitter

At the same time, he said that he will be careful about signing such advertisements in future.

"I was approached about 10 days back. It was a campaign, it was not for any money. So it was a positive campaign which obviously backfired. It was not meant to backfire... Now I¡¯ll think twice before (signing an ad). (Advertisers) should put me as Aditya, and not as Kachra. It can take a different turn altogether. I mean it would be okay if Kachra promotes a soft drink but it is not okay if Kachra says no to plastic. There is a thin line."

Twitter

Meanwhile, Zomato in its apology said, "On World Environment Day, our intent was to spread awareness about the potential of plastic waste and benefits of recycling in a humorous way. Unintentionally, we may have hurt the sentiments of certain communities and individuals. We have taken down the video."

Everyday casteism is unfortunate.
Glad that @zomato ensured timely action and a removal of this ad. pic.twitter.com/auP1aK4uB9

¡ª Dr. Guru Prakash Paswan (@IGuruPrakash) June 8, 2023

For more news and updates from the world of celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.