People familiar with the matter said the edtech startup has pulled ads featuring the actor despite advance bookings, after facing backlash on social media platforms like Twitter over the past few days. While SRK is the face of several leading brands like Hyundai, LG, Dubai Tourism, ICICI Bank and Reliance Jio, byju’s One of the biggest sponsorship deals was for the actor.
When contacted, a Byju’s spokesperson declined to comment.
Aryan Khan was denied bail on Friday in connection with the drug-on-cruise probe.
Two people familiar with the matter said that Shah Rukh’s deal with Byju’s is pegged at an annual fee of Rs 3-4 crore. SRK is the brand ambassador of the company since 2017.
The Bengaluru-based startup has been expanding rapidly in India as well as overseas, apart from making several big-ticket acquisitions, especially in the last two years.
like sky institute, the brick-and-mortar coaching network.
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“He (Byju) has stopped all promotions related to Shahrukh for the time being. It had to be pulled because the company dealing in education does not want to be seen in promotion with him in view of the controversy (over the drug case involving his son),” said a person aware of the matter. It is not clear whether Byju has decided to drop Shah Rukh as the brand ambassador, the person said. “These ads were booked in advance – as is the process – so it took some time to stop them all.”
Byju’s started a new ad campaign with Shah Rukh less than three weeks ago.
“For Byju, he had planned for IPL commercials as well and now there is a restlessness about it as the tournament moves to its next phase. It is not clear whether they will be able to opt out of all IPL promotions,” said another person aware of the matter.
Byju’s is currently the most valuable startup with a valuation of around $18 billion. This
raised $300 million As part of an ongoing funding round earlier this week.
Shah Rukh Khan has also been associated with online grocer BigBasket, which is now owned by the Tata Group. A spokesperson for the company said, “BigBasket would not like to accept, deny or comment on anything herein.” The company declined to comment further on its association with the Bollywood actor.
Rohit Ohri, group chairman, creative aid agency FCB India, who has worked with several celebrities including Shah Rukh and Amitabh Bachchan, said: “Byju’s has benefited immensely from being associated with SRK.” “Shah Rukh’s association with the edtech brand has been so deep and deep that even if Byju’s is withholding ads for now, it will be very difficult for the brand to separate itself from Shah Rukh.”
According to him, Byju’s is trying to protect his brand amid the current controversy, but celebrity endorsements always come with risks. “In the age of social media, the risk is enormous. For example, Nike did not drop Tiger Woods, and in fact, launched a comeback campaign after the huge controversy surrounding the golfer,” he said.
SRK was ranked fourth in the Celebrity Brand Valuation Study by Duff & Phelps with a brand value of $51.1 million. He has 42 million followers on Twitter and 26.5 million followers on Instagram.