Explained: Why Zomato has withdrawn Hrithik Roshan's ad

Zomato had to deliver an apology and withdraw the ad featuring Hrithik Roshan after it went viral facing backlash. In the AI-powered Zomato ad actor, Roshan says he felt like having a "thali" (food platter) in Ujjain so he ordered it from "Mahakal".

The ad created a buzz and not the kind Zomato hoped for. #Boycott started to trend in reference to the ad as priests and devotees of Mahakal temple as they said the ad was not just 'misleading' but also insulting as it is prasad that is given to the devotee and not food that is delivered on a whim.

The Mahakaleshwar or Mahakal temple of Shiva in Ujjain is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas and it attracts hundreds of thousands of devotees from across India.

Withdrawing the ad adn issuing an apology the food delivery firm said that the video is part of the pan-India campaign for which Mahakal Restaurant (simplified as Mahakal) was chosen in Ujjain.

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"We deeply respect the sentiments of the people of Ujjain and the ad in question is no longer running. We offer our sincerest apologies, for the intent here was never to hurt anyone's beliefs and sentiments," Zomato added.