Local Influencer Reacts To Big Pharmacy’s Racist Promo Video
Arwind Kumar highlighted how offensive the video was to the Indian community in Malaysia.
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A recent promotional advertisement by Big Pharmacy is making the rounds on social media for the wrong reasons. The video which was released yesterday, did not sit well with many due to its offensive depiction of the Indian community.
Local influencer Arwind Kumar is among those who have voiced out his disappointment. The content creator took to his social media to express how insensitive the clip was to portray Indians in that manner.
In his clip, he first addresses the actor, who is also a content creator, for blindly agreeing to the role without properly considering the impact of his actions.
“To Kao Yao, I don’t know who you are. We have never met before. I know you are a content creator but can I just tell you whatever you did was not just insensitive but very disgusting,’ said the creator.
He then went on to address the company for giving this promotional video a green light. “The bigger fool is the brand who actually approved the idea and the concept, allowing it to be in the eye of the public.”
But what he found the most shocking was that many in the comment section did not see any issue with the promotional clip.
“You have to know a joke has to be funny. The most shameless people are the people who actually do these kinds of things without taking into consideration the feelings and emotions of other people. It is disgusting.”
Arwind then concluded by urging people to not resort to such degrading ways to gain traction and sales. And instead, find ways that actually leave a positive impact on others.
What the video was about?
Dear Indian people.. Watch this and let me know how you feel.. Am I overreacting? They keep deleting my comments tho pic.twitter.com/rIBdMLUHLD
— 🏴Theguywiththestartattoo🏴 (@tgwtst) October 26, 2023
As narrated by Arwind, the clip stars two characters played by the content creator, Kao Yao. One of the characters was a regular customer and the other was an Indian cashier.
The customer seemed to be in a rush and asked him to quickly wrap up his products. The Indian cashier agreed and then suddenly took a red marker and drew a bindi on his forehead to scan the products.
Official Apology
Big Pharmacy has since issued an official apology on their Instagram. In their statement, they expressed their sincere apologies for the insensitive and offensive nature of the video.
“We recognise the hurtful and offensive nature of this content and claim full responsibility for our lack of due diligence. The content in question goes against our values of diversity and inclusivity.
“We have taken immediate steps to address this issue internally to ensure that such a situation does not happen again.”
The company ended its statement by promising to do better in the future with its content, striving towards content that respects and reflects the vibrant cultures within Malaysia.
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