Cars24's boat campaign goes viral; Gurugram police denies ₹50,000 challan, seizes boat

A quirky marketing stunt by used-car platform Cars24 has sparked a wider conversation about Gurugram’s recurring waterlogging problem. The company reportedly placed a Cars24-branded boat on a flooded road after heavy rain, initially as a humorous take on the city’s monsoon chaos. However, the stunt soon took an unexpected turn when stranded commuters began using the boat to cross the waterlogged stretch.

Prachi Sharma, a Cars24 executive, shared the incident on LinkedIn, saying the company had spent ₹50,000 after the stunt. She described the situation as an example of how a joke can quickly become a necessity when roads become difficult to navigate.

Joke about the rain

Sharma said the boat was initially placed in the water as a joke about the rain. But as the flooding intensified, people started getting into the boat to reach their homes, with rowing becoming one of the fastest ways to cross the flooded road.

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The incident highlighted the severity of waterlogging in parts of Gurugram, where heavy rainfall can leave major roads and residential areas submerged and disrupt daily commuting.

Cars24 claims ₹50,000 challan

According to Sharma’s post, Cars24 was issued a ₹50,000 challan over the boat stunt. She said the company had already paid for the boat and was willing to pay the price again if it was required to take the boat out during another bout of flooding to help people.

The post also took a dig at the situation, with Sharma jokingly saying she was still waiting for someone to “be billed for the water” while hoping the incident would attract attention to the city’s flooding problem.

Traffic Police deny challan, Seizure claims

However, the reported ₹50,000 challan later became a point of confusion. A report citing Gurugram Traffic Police said authorities denied that such a challan had been issued or that the boat had been seized.

This has created conflicting accounts around what exactly happened during the Cars24 stunt, even as the social media post continues to attract attention.

Marketing stunt becomes public conversation

What began as a brand joke quickly turned into a larger conversation about urban infrastructure and monsoon preparedness. The sight of a branded boat being used by commuters on a flooded road highlighted how severely waterlogging can affect everyday life.

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The episode has also divided opinions online. While some users see it as creative marketing that successfully drew attention to Gurugram’s waterlogging problem, others have questioned whether using a boat on a flooded urban road was safe.

One user wrote, "The boat may have been the headline, but the real story is that people found it useful. When a joke starts solving a real problem, it says more about the infrastructure than the campaign itself."

Another user wrote, "Entrepreneurs are constantly looking for new ways to get attention without spending crores on advertising. Turning a flooded Gurgaon road into a boat campaign is certainly unconventional. The challenge is making sure the marketing message doesn't overshadow the civic problem it highlights."