Pierce Brosnan told India health officials that a brand there "cheated" him by linking the British actor to a product with a reported association with an addictive form of tobacco, the BBC News reported.
Brosnan, best known as portraying James Bond in the movies, told the India government in written response that Ashok & Co., a mouth freshener company, never disclosed the hazardous nature of the product Pan Bahar, a senior Indian official said, per the BBC News.
Brosnan told People magazine two years ago that he was "deeply shocked and saddened" to participate in the Pan Bahar ad campaign after learning it may include cancer-causing ingredients.
People wrote that the product is reportedly made of nuts, seeds, herbs and spices, but has been blamed for the red-colored spit stains visible in public areas in India. Brosnan told the magazine that his contract details that he would advertise a "breath freshener/tooth whitener," which wouldn't include an ingredient that turns saliva red.
"As a man who has spent decades championing women's health care and environmental protection, I was distressed to learn of Pan Bahar's unauthorized and deceptive use of my image to endorse their range of pan masala products," Brosnan said, per People in 2016. "I would never have entered into an agreement to promote a product in India that is dangerous to one's health."
BBC News said Ashok & Co. denied in 2016 that tobacco was linked to its product and had not reacted to Brosnan's most recent statement.
Delhi health official S.K. Arora said, according to the BBC News, that Brosnan has assured the Indian government that he has ended his association with Pan Bahar and would help in efforts against any future campaigns. Advertisement of tobacco products is illegal in India, the BBC News said.
The Guardian wrote last month that Delhi health officials had threatened Brosnan with fines and even jail time if he failed to respond in its inquiry.
The Indian Express wrote in 2016 that Brosnan's Pan Bahar ad campaign was mocked on social media there, joking that the actor must have fallen "on hard times." Photoshop images followed poking fun at Brosnan for his endorsement while he was criticized for promoting something that some officials considered unhealthy, The Indian Express said.
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