Zomato Reacts To Backlash On Ads Featuring Hrithik Roshan, Katrina Kaif

New Delhi: Interactive platforms and social media are King in this digital age. Anyone’s worth can scale up our plummet within a matter of hours depending upon the reaction of netizens.

The latest to be in the eye of the storm is food delivery aggregator Zomato that has been a game-changer in the food delivery and dining system in the country. Zomato’s recent ads featuring Bollywood stars Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif have faced backlash from social media users.

Reacting to the negative feedback where users said that delivery partners (DPs) are treated badly, Zomato has released a statement clarifying that the intent behind the ads was to make the DPs the hero.

Here’s how the ad goes. When the delivery person rings the doorbell, he is surprised to find Hrithik behind the door. The actor asks him to wait for a selfie and goes inside to get his phone. In the meantime, the DP gets a message for another delivery and he leaves his chance of clicking a selfie with the star. The ad says, “Hrithik Roshan ho ya aap, apne liye har customer hai star (Whether it’s you or Hrithik Roshan, every customer is a star for Zomato).”

Similarly, in the ad with Katrina Kaif, the actress tells the delivery partner that he can’t leave before having cake. When she comes back with the cake, the delivery partner has set off for another delivery.

Netizens criticised the ads for being tone-deaf and at a time when gig worker payouts and their poor working conditions have come under the scanner. They also pointed out how the ads show that Zomato delivery partners don’t have even a minute for themselves to rest. Zomato was further slammed for spending large bucks on celebrities instead of paying their delivery partners well.

Here is what Zomato said. The ads were conceptualised six months ago which was, “long before any social media chatter around gig worker payouts/ working conditions. The ads are well-intentioned, but were unfortunately misinterpreted by some people.”

In its statement, Zomato acknowledged the social media chatter around gig workers and their poor working conditions. Lately, there have been increased demands that Zomato and other food delivery aggregators work towards the betterment of the delivery associates, who have raised issues on less wage, long working hours and strict delivery timelines.

“We understand that you expect more and better from us,” Zomato said in its statement.

“Our delivery partner Net Promoter Score has increased from -10% to 28% (and continues to rise). We will also, very soon, publish a blog post explaining why we think our delivery partners are fairly compensated for the work/time that they put in,” it concluded.

Read the full statement here:

The other side of the story… pic.twitter.com/hNRj6TpK1X

— zomato (@zomato) August 30, 2021