ASCI rejects Hindustan Unilever's objection to Emami fairness ad campaign

Advertisement Standards Council of India (ASCI), the apex body to regulate advertisements to promote fair competition, has rejected Hindustan Unilever's (HUL) objection to the Emami campaign for its Fair & Handsome mens fairness brand variants.

The complaints, filed by HUL against two fairness brand variants of Emami, had been rejected by the Independent Review Committee (IRC) of ASCI, an Emami spokesman told PTI.

Campaigns for the two fairness variants -- Fair & Handsome Instant Fairness Facewash and Fair & Handsome 100 per cent Oil Clear Instant Fairness Facewash -- were contested by HUL on grounds of use of language and misleading the consumer among others, the spokesman said.

When contacted, an HUL spokesman said, "Regret. We have no comments to offer."

All aspects relating to the objections were personally reviewed by chairman of the IRC at a meeting attended by teams from Emami and HUL, the company said.

Emami claimed that both the brand variants had been subjected to rigorous clinical studies to deliver the required results.

The company said that according to A C Nielsen, the Fair & Handsome fairness brand had reached the number three spot among the cluttered men's facewash market in a span of three years.