#NSTviral: Going viral for the wrong reasons — Big Pharmacy issues apology for racist ad

KUALA LUMPUR: Pharmacy chain, Big pharmacy has issued an apology today for their advertisement that was deemed racist, posted yesterday on social media.

The pharmacy company’s promotional video sparked outrage online for mocking Indian people.

“We recognise the hurtful and offensive nature of this content, and claim full responsibility for our lack of due diligence,” it said in a statement.

“We are, and have always been, committed to inclusion and respect. This mistake is one that we take seriously, will learn from, and improve as we serve all members of our community,” it further read.

Big Pharmacy has assured that they shall do better in making more appropriate and respectful content without offending any communities.

The 24-second screen-recorded video of Big Pharmacy’s advertisement through a social media influencer was posted on X (formerly Twitter) by user @tgwtst and has garnered 42,500 views since it was tweeted yesterday.

The user wrote in his tweet asking how Indians feel about the advertisement, “Dear Indian people. Watch this and let me know how you feel. Am I overreacting? They keep deleting my comments though.”

The video depicted an interaction between a cashier and a customer. However, what presented as racially insensitive was using a Chinese actor to play the part of an Indian character while wearing a red Bindi (a religious symbol worn by Hindus).

The Chinese actor who portrayed the Indian character even resorted to racial stereotypes.

As a result, netizens swiftly flocked to the comments section, voicing their outrage over the advertisement. The outpour of rage wasn’t just limited to the Indian community as it was also evident among the Chinese community.

User @iamdrjoe expressed his frustration by saying: “You don’t need to be an Indian to feel angry about this video. I’m Chinese and I agree that this is extremely racist and insensitive.

“The thing that boggles me most is that Big Pharmacy’s marketing team actually approved the video. Like what the hell?” he said, lacing his tweet with profanities.

Meanwhile, user @RohanBeg said: “I refuse to believe that in the year 2023, with Deepavali right around the corner, that Big Pharmacy greenlit this repulsive, racist ad without knowing exactly what they were doing.

“Dunks are good, but a boycott is better. That’s the only way they’ll learn a lesson.”