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New Delhi: Sunfeast has pulled down an advertisement for its Dark Fantasy Choco Fills line after receiving public criticism from health advocate Revant Himatsingka, better known online as “Food Pharmer”, who said the ad implied the chocolate biscuit could replace vegetables in kids’ lunchboxes.
Himatsingka called out the creative on Instagram, noting that showing the choco biscuit as a lunchbox-worthy item was misleading, particularly given the product’s content of sugar, refined flour, palm oil, and hydrogenated vegetable oil. He described his cause as a push for “responsible advertising,” saying, “I have no problem with chocolate. I have a problem with chocolate being sold as an everyday tiffin item. Sunfeast’s ad, at first glance, suggests that parents should replace vegetables in their child’s lunchbox with Dark Fantasy Choco Fills. My fight is not against any company. My fight is for responsible advertising
In response, Sunfeast posted a clarification: “Sunfeast Dark Fantasy as a brand is about making Tiffin interesting for everyone. The objective of the creative was to show that the veggies were included in the sandwich in an exciting manner rather than being replaced. However, it seems the creative may lead to misunderstanding at first glance, so we have taken down the post from our console and have also spoken to the publisher to remove it from their servers.
By withdrawing the campaign (and asking for it to be removed from publisher servers), the brand effectively acknowledged that the ad risked misinterpretation. The move also drew praise from Himatsingka, who called the response “responsible.”
The case underscores ongoing tensions in the food and beverage sector over how much creative license marketers can take when associating indulgent products with healthier images. While marketing often relies on emotional storytelling, regulators and consumer advocates have increasingly pressed for stricter scrutiny around comparative or suggestive messaging, particularly when children are the implied audience.
For instance, using a biscuit in a lunchbox visual invites the viewer to equate it with balanced meals, not in explicit claims, but via implication.
Himatsingka, a food-label watchdog and influencer, has in recent years become a regular critic of misleading food marketing. He gained wide attention for dissecting the sugar content in Bournvita and pushing for regulatory reforms.
Sunfeast’s swift removal of the “Dark Fantasy” campaign highlights how public pressure and social media scrutiny can trigger brand reversals. For advertisers, the incident reinforces the importance of preemptive review and clarity, especially when product positioning intersects with nutrition, health, and vulnerable audiences.
As regulations and consumer expectations tighten, brands will have to tread carefully between creative storytelling and responsible messaging. Cases like this may become testing grounds for how far indulgent brands can push narrative without crossing into misleading territory.