Mosaic Wellness Private Limited - Be Bodywise

Recommendation: Not Upheld | Medium: Industry Member

The ASCI had approached the advertiser for its response in addressing the grievances of the complainant and forwarded the details of the complaint, verbatim, to the advertiser with a request to

respond to the same. The advertiser was offered an option to seek an Informal Resolution (IR) of the complaint by modifying or withdrawing the advertisement. The advertiser was also offered an opportunity for a telecon with the ASCI Secretariat, which they did not avail and submitted their response. 

The advertiser in their response stated that the advertisement must be considered as a whole. The advertisement does not depict an actual dermatological or clinical examination, any identified diagnostic test, clinical score, or  any doctor recommendation, prescription or administration of the product as a medicine.  The advertiser further submitted that the advertisement does not use the

expressions – instant or immediate, after  one wash, single application, deep repair or cure. The advertisement does not show the consumer applying the  product followed by disappearance of her body acne, visible restoration of the skin barrier, any before-and-after  comparison, or complete repair following a single application. 

The advertiser provided a copy of a product label and product approval license. 

The Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) viewed the Instagram advertisement (https://www.instagram.com/reels/DZbxSEZtQsK/), considered the complaint, and the advertiser’s response.  

Objection - Medical-emergency framing positioning a cosmetic as an acute medical treatment. 

The CCC viewed the advertisement in its entirety and considered the visual showing the ambulance crashing through the bathroom wall to be an obvious exaggeration. The medical imagery was presented in a humorous manner and did not represent a literal medical emergency or clinical treatment.

The CCC further discussed that the product is presented as a body wash and is not shown as a medicine or as a substitute for medical treatment. Hence, the overall presentation was not considered to create a misleading impression that the product is an acute medical intervention. 

Objection – Depiction of actives instantly repairing a severely damaged skin barrier, implying immediate therapeutic results from a rinse-off product. 

The CCC observed that the advertisement does not contain any express claim of immediate or single-use benefits. 

There is also no before-and-after demonstration, time indication, or visual showing that acne is cleared or that the skin barrier is completely repaired after use. In the context of the advertisement as a whole, the visuals do not suggest that the product provides instantaneous skin repair or therapeutic effects. 

The CCC discussed that the product's `2-in-1’ presentation communicates its exfoliating and hydrating

functions  and does not, in itself, indicate that the claimed benefits are achieved after a single application of the product. 

The CCC further discussed that, in the advertisement, the line `where drama ends’ functions as a transition from the exaggerated opening sequence to the product presentation. 

Based on these observations, the CCC concluded that the medical-emergency framing, and claims of instant therapeutic skin-barrier repair, are not misleading, and not in contravention of Chapter I of the ASCI Code. This complaint was NOT UPHELD.