Vimal ad row: SRK, Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff respond to FDA notices, says Tukaram Mundhe

Speaking to reporters, Mundhe said, "Regarding those notices, responses from all three have come. Two of them had asked for a hearing. Their hearing was finished yesterday. We are proceeding further."

However, Mundhe did not reveal which two of the three actors had sought personal hearings.

Mundhe calls out actors over tobacco advertising

Earlier this month, Mundhe had described the actors as "violators of the law" after one of them allegedly failed to respond to the show-cause notice within the stipulated period.

At an event titled Yuva, hosted by NDTV, the FDA commissioner also criticised what he described as "double standards" in the advertising of tobacco products and challenged celebrities endorsing such products to allow their children to consume them first.

"I hate to be a sycophant. Anybody. I hate sycophancy. Double standards, multiple standards, multiple faces, I don't like them," Mundhe said.

"Why ask somebody else to follow it? Let's start with yourself," he added.

Why did Maharashtra FDA issue notices?

On August 11, 2026, the Maharashtra FDA issued show-cause notices to Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff over their appearance in a Vimal Elaichi advertisement.

The regulator alleged that the campaign could amount to surrogate advertising for Vimal Pan Masala, which is prohibited under Maharashtra's regulations.

Although the advertisement promotes Vimal Elaichi or cardamom, the FDA is examining whether its branding and presentation could indirectly promote the Vimal Pan Masala brand.

Surrogate advertising refers to the promotion of a permitted product or service using branding or imagery associated with a restricted or prohibited product.

What did the FDA ask the actors?

The notices sought explanations from the three actors regarding their involvement in the advertisement, including:

• Their role as brand endorsers.
• Why action should not be taken against them.
• Details of their endorsement contracts.
• Campaign briefs and other promotional material.
• Their remuneration.
• The due diligence they conducted before agreeing to the campaign.

The FDA also directed the actors to discontinue their participation in the campaign and remove related promotional material from their social media accounts and other platforms.

The latest development comes as the Maharashtra FDA continues its proceedings after receiving responses from all three actors and completing hearings requested by two of them.