The controversy behind the ad has helped it reach more people, says Tanishq's Ad maker

New Delhi: Tanishq's advertisement campaign's creator on Tuesday said that the withdrawn advertisement has garnered more views following the controversy and outrage it has sparked. She also clarified that it has helped in paving the way for more people to buy Tanishq products.

Amit Akali, managing partner and creative head of 'What's Your Problem', the leading agency behind the campaign said, "After the controversy, the silent majority came forward and spoke out against the agitated minority."

"Since the gist of the ad was communal harmony, none of us expected any controversy of this kind," he added.

On withdrawing the advertisement, Amit labelled Tanishq as a "brave" company that had to eventually withdraw the ad for the safety of their employees.

The 45-second long advertisement of Tanishq Jewellery, owned by Tata Group, was backlashed for promoting love jihad. Some extremist Hindutva activists had come out against the visual advertisement of a Muslim family celebrating the godh barai( bridal shower) of their Hindu daughter-in-law.

Tanishq later withdrew the ad after netizens took to the internet, venting their anger and tweeting under the hashtag, #BoycottTanishq. Although the ad had to be withdrawn, several people came forward in support of Tanishq including Shashi Tharoor, Chetan Bhagat, etc.

The advertisement was only intended to visualize cultural realities. It had no politics at all. Amit said Tanishq would continue its campaign for their "Ekatva" series representing unity. He also added that the message had reached more people than people would have seen if the ad had not been withdrawn.