Notices to Shah Rukh, Ajay Devgn & Tiger Shroff: Vimal Elaichi makers drag Maharashtra FDA to Delhi HC
On August 11, the Maharashtra FDA issued notices to the three actors, alleging that advertisements for Vimal Elaichi amount to surrogate advertising for Vimal Pan Masala, a chewable product prohibited in the state.
- Sep 10, 2026,
- Updated Sep 10, 2026 11:47 AM IST
In a sharp escalation over celebrity-endorsed campaigns, the makers of Vimal Elaichi have approached the Delhi High Court to quash show-cause notices issued by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to brand ambassadors Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, and Tiger Shroff over the alleged surrogate promotion of banned pan masala.
PB Agro LLP, the master licensee and manufacturer of Vimal Elaichi, filed the petition on Monday, contending that the regulators directed the notices strictly at the actors while bypassing the corporate entity itself. The firm argued in its plea that any adverse regulatory enforcement against the campaign would inflict "irreparable harm" on its business operations.
Challenging the regulatory move on legal and territorial grounds, the company asserted that the Maharashtra FDA lacked the underlying jurisdiction to halt the ad campaign or mandate the removal of digital promotional material.
DON'T MISS | Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff respond to FDA notice over ad, Shah Rukh Khan not yet: Report
Rebutting the allegations of proxy branding, PB Agro maintained that the charges are baseless, noting in its petition that "Vimal pan masala has not been manufactured in Maharashtra since 2001." The enterprise emphasized that regulatory authorities ought to have initiated proceedings against the manufacturing company directly rather than exclusively singling out the celebrity endorsers.
Consequently, PB Agro has prayed for specific judicial directions to invalidate the FDA notices and restrain authorities from taking any further coercive action regarding the Vimal Elaichi promotional campaign.
A bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma in the Delhi High Court has reserved its order on the preliminary issue of whether the court possesses the requisite jurisdiction to hear a challenge directed against regulatory enforcement initiated in Maharashtra.
The High Court's ruling on territorial jurisdiction will decide whether the substantive merits of the FDA's surrogate-advertising claims — along with the legal validity of the notices served to Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, and Tiger Shroff — will be adjudicated in Delhi or shifted to another forum.
DO CHECKOUT: ‘Responsibility of the endorser’: Tukaram Mundhe on FDA notice to Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn
The legal action stems from August 11, when the Maharashtra FDA dispatched formal show-cause notices to the three leading actors, alleging that the commercials for Vimal Elaichi effectively function as surrogate advertising for Vimal Pan Masala, a chewable tobacco product prohibited across the state.
The regulatory authority instructed the actors to produce documentary proof demonstrating that Vimal Elaichi exists as an independent, stand-alone commercial product rather than a proxy front for the banned pan masala line.
Moreover, the FDA ordered the stars to immediately withdraw from the endorsement drive and stop participating in the campaign. The actors were also directed to purge all related promotional media from their personal social media handles, official websites, and online channels, while halting any future endorsements of the brand.
In a sharp escalation over celebrity-endorsed campaigns, the makers of Vimal Elaichi have approached the Delhi High Court to quash show-cause notices issued by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to brand ambassadors Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, and Tiger Shroff over the alleged surrogate promotion of banned pan masala.
PB Agro LLP, the master licensee and manufacturer of Vimal Elaichi, filed the petition on Monday, contending that the regulators directed the notices strictly at the actors while bypassing the corporate entity itself. The firm argued in its plea that any adverse regulatory enforcement against the campaign would inflict "irreparable harm" on its business operations.
Challenging the regulatory move on legal and territorial grounds, the company asserted that the Maharashtra FDA lacked the underlying jurisdiction to halt the ad campaign or mandate the removal of digital promotional material.
DON'T MISS | Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff respond to FDA notice over ad, Shah Rukh Khan not yet: Report
Rebutting the allegations of proxy branding, PB Agro maintained that the charges are baseless, noting in its petition that "Vimal pan masala has not been manufactured in Maharashtra since 2001." The enterprise emphasized that regulatory authorities ought to have initiated proceedings against the manufacturing company directly rather than exclusively singling out the celebrity endorsers.
Consequently, PB Agro has prayed for specific judicial directions to invalidate the FDA notices and restrain authorities from taking any further coercive action regarding the Vimal Elaichi promotional campaign.
A bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma in the Delhi High Court has reserved its order on the preliminary issue of whether the court possesses the requisite jurisdiction to hear a challenge directed against regulatory enforcement initiated in Maharashtra.
The High Court's ruling on territorial jurisdiction will decide whether the substantive merits of the FDA's surrogate-advertising claims — along with the legal validity of the notices served to Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, and Tiger Shroff — will be adjudicated in Delhi or shifted to another forum.
DO CHECKOUT: ‘Responsibility of the endorser’: Tukaram Mundhe on FDA notice to Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn
The legal action stems from August 11, when the Maharashtra FDA dispatched formal show-cause notices to the three leading actors, alleging that the commercials for Vimal Elaichi effectively function as surrogate advertising for Vimal Pan Masala, a chewable tobacco product prohibited across the state.
The regulatory authority instructed the actors to produce documentary proof demonstrating that Vimal Elaichi exists as an independent, stand-alone commercial product rather than a proxy front for the banned pan masala line.
Moreover, the FDA ordered the stars to immediately withdraw from the endorsement drive and stop participating in the campaign. The actors were also directed to purge all related promotional media from their personal social media handles, official websites, and online channels, while halting any future endorsements of the brand.