Swiggy, a foodtech major, issued a clarification on Thursday after a purported advertisement taking a jibe at its rival Zomato went viral on social media platforms.
Taking to X, Swiggy said, “If it isn’t already obvious, this is not an ad by Swiggy. It was neither created by us nor anybody affiliated with Swiggy.”
“Kindly refrain from circulating or attributing it to Swiggy,” said the company.
The advertisement, posted by X user Nilesh Trivedi, has the logo and name of Swiggy on top saying, “Eviction-safe food delivery. In Indian neighbourhoods, your dietary preferences are best kept private. Our delivery fleet doesn’t leak your private habits to the world. You also save some money as we don’t have to pay for the life insurance of our delivery staff against possible mob lynchings.”
In a subsequent post, the user said, “This image is not an authentic ad by Swiggy. It is sarcasm/satire/parody. I thought I had dropped sufficient clues.”
Zomato sparked controversy by introducing a specialized fleet exclusively for vegetarian cuisine. This initiative involves delivering food from restaurants serving solely vegetarian dishes, with delivery personnel adorned in green attire.
Continue Exploring: Zomato launches dedicated services for vegetarian customers with exclusive ‘Pure Veg Fleet’ and ‘Pure Veg Mode’
Facing criticism over the decision, Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal later stated that the company has opted to eliminate the on-ground segregation of its rider fleet using the color green.
“While we are going to continue to have a fleet for vegetarians, we have decided to remove the on-ground segregation of this fleet on the ground using the colour green. All our riders — both our regular fleet, and our fleet for vegetarians — will wear the colour red,” Goyal posted on X.
Continue Exploring: Zomato faces social media backlash over ‘Pure Veg Fleet’ launch; CEO open to rollback amid controversy
He said that feedback received after Tuesday’s announcement indicated some of Zomato’s “customers could get into trouble with their landlords”.
Social media users criticized Zomato’s move, arguing that the decision to differentiate fleet partners would perpetuate caste segregation. Some also raised concerns about the possibility of Zomato’s regular fleet facing restrictions from some societies and resident welfare associations.
Continue Exploring: Zomato reverts to red uniforms for all riders amidst social media backlash over ‘Pure Veg Mode’