Advertisements using pictures of random people are not a new thing under the sun. There have been numerous instances in the past where businesses have used images of unrelated people for their own gain or to make false claims. In a similar incident, renowned historian Manu S. Pillai recently went through the same ordeal and shared his experience on social media.
The advertisement featured the historian as an engineer in a yet-to-be-launched networking app's demo profile. The commercial was for the impending EdTech company Unacademy Group’s upcoming product NextLevel. This app is being marketed as a replacement for LinkedIn. The ad was also shared by the founder of Unacademy Group. Although he shared it to promote the app, it took a different turn.
Pillai took to the comment section and reacted to his post. He wrote, "Apparently I am "Sagar Chauhan", senior frontend engineer. Not the first time this is happening. Somewhat miffed that I have such a generic face, it gets lifted for all kinds of random advertisements."
The historian then shared a screenshot and described another occasion in which his image was used for an marketing campaign. He wrote, "In the past I have been Mohit Gaur who liked to make free pdfs."
After Pillai revealed that his pictures have been used for the interpretation by other companies too, several people took to the comment section to react on it. One user wrote, "It might be cos you emanate good conscientious person vibes. Young, hopeful Indian man not bogged down by middle aged girth or grump stock images." Another user commented, "Omg Have you tried telling them to take it off ? Once some magazine used one of my pictures (along with my mom) for an article they had written (which wasn’t about me) and I made them take it down." A third user wrote, "On a lighter note... You are a courtesan, a Mahatma, a Rebel Sultan, an Italian Bramhin... all built into one."
Also read: Delhi airport or fish market? Netizens spark meme fest after chaos created at IGI airport
While some users took hilarious jabs at the incident, others asked Pillai to take action against such companies.
Also read: YouTuber Armaan Malik's two pregnant wives recall heart-wrenching miscarriage stories amid trolling
