Ranveer Allahbadia controversy: Brands retreat, influencers scramble, agencies tightening grip on creators

One influencer, one comment, one video but countless repercussions. YouTuber Ranveer  Allahbadia's lewd remark on India's Got Latent show has not only resulted in FIRs (first information report) against him and other creators present in the show, but it is also causing other creators to lose brand deals as companies want to stay away from controversies, making the influencer marketing space jittery.

Vlogger Shenaz Treasury was recently dropped from a brand deal following the India's Got Latent issue. "I was going to join hands with a platform - a marathon platform. They were offering equity. Following the Allahbadia controversy, they (the brand) called me and dropped me from the project which is very upsetting. They said they can't afford to have celebrities or influencers because look what happened with Allahbadia. If you say something then someone will come and shut us down. This is a big loss. Brands are being a little wary right now," she told Moneycontrol.

She also said that she is mad at Allahbadia because the controversy surrounding him has taken away the attention from the discussion on poor air quality in India that was talked about in Nikhil Kamath's podcast with American millionaire Bryan Johnson.

Vlogger Shenaz Treasury.

It doesn't stop at brand deals. In the aftermath of this controversy, many comedians are facing cancelled shows especially in Rajasthan. A recent example is Apoorva Mukhija, who was dropped from the list of official ambassadors for the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards ceremony set to take place in Rajasthan as she was part of India's Got Latent show.

Not funny

Standup comic Anubhav Singh Bassi's shows in Lucknow were cancelled due tothe  Uttar Pradesh State Women's Commission raising concerns over the use of inappropriate language in his comedy acts. Aparna Yadav, Vice Chairperson of the UP State Women's Commission has also appealed to authorities to reassess similar events in the future.

There are certain categories like comedy/standup from which the brands want to stay away, noted Sahil Chopra, Founder and CEO (Chief Executive Officer), of ad-tech platform iCubesWire.

"As far as my experience goes working with large brands, since the AIB knockout show (which streamed in 2015) brands are reluctant to work with standups (comics). Brands are like we don't know what joke they will crack which will become a national issue."

Careful creators

Chopra along with leading influencers and marketers late last week launched India Influencer Governing Council that will work towards raising awareness among influencers and brands on the dos and don'ts while also issuing guidelines to promote responsible content creation.

"We will call out content and influencers if it doesn’t comply with the guidelines," he said. The  CEO also said that the influencer community is being selective of what they say so expect a lot of moderation in content in the coming days.

Pallavi Singh, a lifestyle content creator also said that creators are becoming careful as they think that when big influencers like Allahbadia and Mukhija have been called out so they can be too hence they think they should be more careful.

Short-term pullback

"Brands are also going to be very particular, they are going to be careful of who they hire, they will do stricter profiling in terms of work, the creators' communication on their personal pages and accounts because nobody wants last minute cancellations and abruptions."

Neelesh Pednekar, Co-Founder and Head Of Digital Media at Social Pill, a digital marketing agency expects a short-term pullback as the market re-evaluates partnerships. "Brands are tightening their grip. They’re asking for more detailed assurances and proactive vetting measures before committing to partnerships."

This incident reinforces the importance of carefully vetting creators before partnerships, said Tanay Sharma, Co-Founder, and COO of CITTA, a Pune-based bath and skincare brand.

Chirag Chheda Senior Vice President of Marketing - STRCH Active said that while collaborating with influencers who are mostly from the fitness and sports category they always ensure that none of the creators use crass content and stay away from controversial topics.

"This event has given a strong message which was really required that content should not go below a certain limit. When we talk with our agencies or any influencers, we make sure of what message we want to convey with the kind of content we create," said Dr. Vipul Lunawat, Founder Director, Institute of Sports Science & Technology, Pune.

Legal aid

The fallout of the Allahbadia controversy has led to many influencer marketing agencies, creators, show organisers and sponsors/brands approaching their legal aids to seek legal remedies.

"This whole controversy around ‘India’s Got Latent’ and Ranveer Allahbadia has really shaken up the influencer marketing space. Since then, more influencers and marketing agencies have been reaching out for legal advice," said Shreya Sharma, Lawyer and Founder of a legal aggregator platform, Rest The Case.

Anupam Shukla who heads technology law and privacy practice at Pioneer Legal also has been approached by many agencies and influencers following this incident. People (agencies and influencers) have become jittery and concerned because nobody anticipated this kind of reaction," he said.

Shukla added that those who have approached them in the last week like an organiser have asked "What if someone says something obscene in our show and if we get embroiled in the controversy what protection can I get?"

"Many of our clients have a good degree of protection built in their system with clauses like protection against fallout in a live show. People have criminal lawyers on standby just in case such things happen. Our clients now have sought a check whether there is anything more that they need to do. But these situations (referring to the recent controversy) are not something that can be anticipated," Shukla added, saying that this issue will lead to the strengthening of contracts because people have covered TV and to some extent streaming media but brands, agencies and influencers will have to cover short-form content, Instagram Reels. "That is one area where they have to strengthen their contract."

Stronger vetting and contractual frameworks are becoming the norm. Legal safeguards have been strengthened, with more precise contracts outlining content rights and crisis protocols.

Agencies tighten grip on influencers

Influencer marketing agencies have revisited their communication with creators and the guidelines for content creation.

For instance, influencer marketing agency Boomlet has strengthened its content approval mechanism. "For any hero content—major campaigns or flagship pieces—we now seek regulatory approvals well in advance," said the agency's Founder and CEO, Danish Malik.

He noted that the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) offers an 'Endorser Due Diligence' (EDD) service under which a panel that has an understanding of the Consumer Protection Regulations and in-depth knowledge of the ASCI Code checks an advertisements storyboard and provides feedback.

The firm has also tightened its guidelines for creative strategies. "Our strategic and creative teams are now more vigilant in ideation, especially when exploring quirky or edgy concepts. To support this, we have brought on board specialized legal consultants who review the creative proposals before they are presented to clients," Malik added.

They have also updated their content guidelines document which already covers around 40-50 various aspects of content creation, including language, tone, and copyright regulations. "In response to the recent events, we are in the process of adding 5-10 more points, specifically addressing content rights, intent, and sensitive topics," he said.

Malik also noted that the controversy has sparked multiple strategic discussions across the industry. "We have observed a noticeable increase in consultation requests from brands, seeking expert advice on navigating influencer marketing with heightened caution. Furthermore, brands have become more selective and vigilant in their collaborations. The rapid reputational decline witnessed by prominent influencers within just four days has served as a stark reminder of the volatility in the digital space."

Even Pednekar's agency has amplified its content review process and has overhauled its legal framework. "Our contracts now feature robust clauses that clearly define content responsibilities and immediate remedies if things go south," he said.

Another influencer marketing agency VidUnit Media has strengthened their contracts in terms of brand deals with influencers. "We’ve introduced formal agreements with influencers for high-value deals and sensitive partnerships, even for one-time collaborations," said Sourabh Kumar, the firm's Founder and CEO.

Other agencies pointed out that they have been following risk prevention to avoid getting involved in such controversies.

"We use proprietary risk prevention and detection mechanisms. Once campaigns are live, our platforms utilize AI (artificial intelligence) and ML (machine learning) technologies to automatically analyze posts and videos for potential red flags before they go live. This includes checking for alignment with community guidelines and brand safety standards. Additionally, we engage in sentiment analysis and continuous social monitoring to track audience reactions and address any issues proactively," said Ritesh Ujjwal, Co-Founder, Kofluence.

Kalyan Kumar, Co-founder and CEO of KlugKlug said that they let brands check the sentiments of their influencers commenters at a profile level.

Opportunity for smaller creators

Some see this issue as an opportunity for smaller creators to grow.

"Controversies like this could push brands to diversify their influencer portfolios. Instead of relying solely on high-profile influencers, brands might explore partnerships with a mix of macro (those with 500,000-1 million followers), micro (10,000-50,000 followers), and nano-influencers (1,000-10,000 followers)," Ujjwal said.

VidUnit's Kumar also expects brands to introduce a new influencer mix and be open to including micro-influencers.

While India has more than tripled the influencer count to 40.6 lakh last year from 9.6 lakh in 2020, the majority of them are not able to monetise their content.

"There's no money in the creator economy in India. Most creators in India are not making any money. For the time being, it's a brand play," Nuseir Yassin, the man behind Nas Daily, had told Moneycontrol in a recent interview.