Actor Anushka Sharma on Monday stunned her social media followers and Instagram users after she slammed sportswear brand Puma for using her images "without permission". The brand has now responded, and the reply has confused social media users.
Puma India took to their official Instagram handle and posted a picture of what appears to be a contract. The image mentions "Puma x Anushka" and has a "confidential" stamp on it. Along with the photo, the company wrote, "Hey @anushkasharma, we should've reached out sooner! Should we take things to the next level, then? "
The actress then took to her Instagram stories to repost the same and wrote, "I'll sleep on it".
In an Instagram story posted yesterday, the actor reposted the picture shared by the brand to promote its sale event and wrote, "Hey, @PumaIndia? I'm sure you know that you have to take permission before you can use my imagery for publicity since I am not your ambassador.''
The actress had demanded the brand to remove the post and wrote, "Please take it down," along with angry emojis to express her displeasure. It was also posted by her husband and former captain of the Indian cricket team Virat Kohli. He wrote, "Please sort this out Puma India."
Users were quick to point out that all this a promotional strategy used by the brand to create excitement online.
"Promotional strategy at best," said one user.
A second person said, "Marketing on point."
"Marketing team of Puma >>> Marketing Team of Zomato" said another person.
"2min silence for those who think this is a real fight," said a fourth user.
Also Read: Viral Video: Man Drapes Saree At A Store, Internet Amused With His Skills
Such strategy was also used by other brands online. Recently, Malaika Arora shared a cryptic post on Instagram and captioned it as, "I said yes." Many internet users speculated that it is an announcement involving her boyfriend, Arjun Kapoor. However, she later revealed that "she said yes" to a reality show titled 'Moving In With Malaika' , which is currently streaming on Disney+Hotstar.
