Madhu Chopra Weighs In on Kriti Sanon’s Raksha Bandhan Ad Row: ‘Daayra Zaruri Hai’

Madhu Chopra has joined the public conversation surrounding Kriti Sanon’s withdrawn Raksha Bandhan advertisement, arguing that personal choice should be balanced with the context and values associated with an occasion.

Speaking at the Women Building Cinema Together event in Mumbai, Priyanka Chopra’s mother acknowledged the principle of “my body, my choice” but added, “Woh daayra zaruri hai” boundaries are necessary. Her remarks came after jewellery brand GIVA removed the festive campaign from its media platforms following objections to Sanon’s styling and the advertisement’s depiction of Raksha Bandhan.

The development is significant because it shifts the row beyond one advertisement. The discussion now involves competing ideas about personal expression, cultural context and whether a woman’s clothing should determine how her respect for a festival is judged.

What Madhu Chopra said about the controversy

According to footage and remarks reported from the Mumbai event, Madhu said individual choice was valid but should also account for “dignity” and other people’s values. She suggested that clothing should be appropriate to the setting and occasion.

When asked about Priyanka Chopra wearing bold or Western outfits, Madhu did not reject such clothing outright. She said her children also wear similar outfits, both professionally and by choice, but maintained that the overall presentation should work aesthetically for the occasion.

Her comments should therefore be understood as her personal opinion on context and presentation not as evidence of wrongdoing by Sanon or the brand.

Why Kriti Sanon’s GIVA advertisement was withdrawn

The GIVA campaign showed Sanon celebrating Raksha Bandhan in an Indo-Western ensemble comprising a bralette-style blouse, cape and draped skirt. She tied a rakhi to an onscreen brother and also extended the ritual to a pet dog.

Parts of the campaign drew criticism, principally over Sanon’s outfit and the inclusion of the pet in the celebration. Actor and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut was among the prominent figures who objected to its presentation.

GIVA subsequently announced that it had withdrawn the advertisement from all media. In its official social-media statement, the company said the campaign was intended to extend the celebration to pets as members of the family. It added that hurting anyone’s sentiments had not been its intention.

The withdrawal is confirmed. However, it should not be described as an admission that the campaign violated any law or advertising regulation. No such regulatory finding has been identified.

Kriti Sanon defended the campaign’s message

Before the advertisement was removed, Sanon addressed the criticism through an Instagram Story. She argued that the meaning of a festival comes from the emotions attached to its traditions rather than a prescribed dress code.

Sanon also explained that she and her sister, Nupur Sanon, tie rakhis to each other because protection need not be treated solely as a brother’s responsibility. She said the family extended the same prayer and promise to their dogs.

Turning to the criticism of her clothes, the actor asked when society would stop telling women what to wear. Her response concluded: “Culture and traditions are in her heart, not in her neckline.”

That statement and Madhu Chopra’s subsequent remarks represent opposing perspectives within the same debate. Sanon challenged the use of clothing as a measure of culture; Madhu argued that individual choice should still reflect the occasion.

What has actually changed

The original controversy centred on the advertisement itself and the criticism of Sanon’s outfit. Since then, two concrete developments have occurred: GIVA has withdrawn the campaign, and Sanon has publicly defended both its broader message and her freedom of dress.

Madhu Chopra’s remarks do not alter either of those facts. They add another identifiable opinion to a debate that continued after the campaign was taken down.

The Celebrity Hour Take

The most revealing part of this row is the contrast between the campaign’s intended theme and the discussion it ultimately produced.

GIVA said the advertisement was designed to widen the idea of family by including pets. Sanon’s response broadened that message further, presenting sisters as equal protectors rather than limiting Raksha Bandhan to the conventional brother-protects-sister formulation. Yet the public conversation became dominated by what she wore.

For brands, the episode demonstrates how festive advertising can lose control of its central message when styling becomes the flashpoint. For celebrities, it also shows why criticism of a campaign and criticism of the woman appearing in it are not necessarily the same thing. The next meaningful development would be a substantive response from GIVA or Sanon not additional commentary detached from the creative decisions behind the advertisement.

Sources & Verification

This report was prepared using GIVA’s publicly reported withdrawal statement, Kriti Sanon’s Instagram response as reproduced by multiple established publications, and coverage of Madhu Chopra’s remarks at the Women Building Cinema Together event. The advertisement’s content, the sequence of public responses and the brand’s decision were cross-checked across PTI-linked and established national-media reports. Madhu Chopra’s comments are presented as her opinion, not as an established standard governing cultural or festive clothing.