Curativity Co-founder flags alleged idea theft in Wagh Bakri ad

Curativity co-founder Amer Jaleel has raised concerns over similarities between a campaign pitch submitted by his agency to Wagh Bakri Tea and a recently released advertisement by the brand, reportedly developed by FCB Group.

In a LinkedIn post published on 5 May, Jaleel stated that Curativity had pitched creative concepts to Wagh Bakri at the request of a former client who had joined the company. Among the ideas presented, according to Jaleel, were the tagline Aisi Chai Jo Zubaan Pe Reh Jaaye and a visual strategy focused on highlighting the brand’s Tea Masters, in contrast to traditional tea garden imagery. Both elements appear in the final advertisement.

Jaleel noted that Curativity had not been involved in the execution of the campaign. “Delighted with the coincidence, we wrote to the esteemed management of Wagh Bakri,” he wrote, adding that the agency had not yet received an official response regarding the pitch outcome.

The post has drawn significant attention within the advertising industry, with several professionals sharing similar experiences of idea appropriation during client pitches. The incident has renewed discussion around creative ownership and intellectual property in the advertising sector.

This development follows another recent case involving agency Creativeland Asia, which filed a legal complaint against online gaming platform WinZO. The agency alleges that WinZO applied to trademark the tagline Jeeto Har Dinzo, a concept reportedly presented during an earlier pitch, without formal agreement or compensation.

At the time of publication, neither Wagh Bakri nor FCB had issued a formal statement regarding the matter. The story will be updated as responses become available.

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