Suhana Khan’s latest ad commercial for smartphone company Vivo has gone viral for all the wrong reasons.
In the commercial, the Archies actress was dressed in a black drop top with jeans. She delivered a one-line dialogue before transitioning into a dance sequence to promote the brand’s new smartphone
However, her role was deemed less-than-ideal by social media users, who have relentlessly criticized her performance as well as the direction of the ad.
“Suhana in the new Vivo Ad is absolutely horrible,” a Redditor wrote while sharing the commercial on the platform, and most other users shared the sentiment. One of the most prominent criticisms was her alleged lack of screen presence.
“Man she has negative screen presence. She’s in the front yet your attention goes to side characters,” a user wrote in response. “She could fade in the background and nobody would notice,” another agreed.
Many believed that Suhana Khan appeared “camera conscious” and was unable to command the attention expected of a lead figure in a commercial. Some admitted to stopping the ad midway due to her lack of appeal.
The ad has also ignited the age-old debate about nepotism in Bollywood, with many criticizing Suhana’s collaboration with Vivo despite her alleged lack of credentials.
“On what basis is she getting endorsements? She has neither looks, charm nor screen presence.” a user wrote.
“Her father can lobby all he wants to get her gigs but will never be able to give her any of his aura nor screen presence,” another said.
“My sympathies with the background dancers,” a third user observed.
Beyond criticisms of Suhana Khan specifically, many users expressed dissatisfaction with the advertisement itself, criticizing the direction it had chosen to go in to promote its product. Rather than highlighting the features of the phone in an informative manner, many believed that they spent too much time focusing on a song-and-dance routine.
“It looks more like a dance skit than a phone ad,” one user commented, highlighting that the ad felt disconnected from the purpose of promoting a product.
“Instead of telling phone ke features, it has a random song and dance,” another said, explaining that the ad missed the mark in terms of brand messaging.
Watch the ad here:
View the ad here.
