Coca-Cola has been facing backlash over its new ad for Bangladesh.
A 60-second advertisement tried to distance itself from Israel in the face of a widespread boycott and falling sales over the Gaza war. Moreover, the ad featured the two top actors of Bangladesh.
The advertisement in Bengali opens with a young man approaching a middle-aged shopkeeper as the latter watches a song from Coke Studio, a popular music series the cola company promotes in several South Asian countries, on his mobile phone.
“How are you, Sohail? Should I give you a [bottle of] Coke?” asks the shopkeeper, turning a table fan towards his sweaty customer. The man replies: “No Bablu bhai [brother], I am not drinking this stuff anymore.”
When the shopkeeper asks why, the young man says: “This stuff is from ‘that place’.” He does not name the “place” — but it soon becomes clear that he is referring to Israel. The shopkeeper, through a conversation with the man and his friends, explains to them that Coca-Cola is not from “that place” and that claims linking it to “that place” are misinformation.
The shopkeeper tells them: “Listen, guys, Coke is not at all from ‘that place’. For the past 138 years, people in 190 countries have been drinking Coke. They drink it in Turkey, Spain, and Dubai. Even Palestine has a Coke factory.” A relieved Sohail asks for a bottle of Coke.
This ad was enough to spark a storm of criticism for the beverage giant over its attempt to distance itself from Israel amid the war on Gaza. Since October 2023, when Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip began, dozens of companies, including Coca-Cola, have seen a decline in sales in Muslim-majority countries, with consumers calling for a boycott of firms.
