Pierce Brosnan has landed himself in hot water in India – as authorities in Delhi have asked the actor to explain why he was in an ad for a local mouth freshener.
Back in 2016, Pierce’s image appeared in an advert for Pan Bahar, a mouth freshener which has been associated with an addictive form of chewing tobacco.
The BBC has reported that the former Bond star could be fined 5,000 rupees (£56), or go to jail for two years if he doesn’t respond within 10 days.
In Indian law, all advertisements of tobacco products are prohibited, and Pierce condemned the “unauthorised” use of his image in the ad for Pan Bahar back in 2016.
Delhi government issues notice to #PierceBrosnan over a paan masala advertisement https://t.co/ER7tFVCh3n pic.twitter.com/8GELTurPyf
— scroll.in (@scroll_in) February 14, 2018
“We have issued the notice to Pierce Brosnan through the company, and also reached out to him via social media platforms,” officials from Delhi’s health department told the Indian Express newspaper.
Pan Bahar is commonly associated with pan masala and gutka, a potent mixture of tobacco, crushed betel nut, lime, and clove among other ingredients.
Pan masala and gutka have been linked to cancer, and people who chew it reportedly get addicted to its mildly psychotropic effects.
Back in 2016, Ashok & Co, the company that produces Pan Bahar, claimed that no tobacco or nicotine are in the product.
Meanwhile, PEOPLE have reported that Pierce said his contract was to advertise a single product – a “breath freshener/tooth whitener” that contained no ” tobacco” or any “harmful ingredient.”
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