Brand masculinity meets screen misogyny in new Beardo campaign

New Delhi: Beardo’s latest brand film, featuring Bollywood actor Bobby Deol, has made a comment on modern masculinity through its latest launch of the “Unfiltered. Untamed. Unstoppable.” campaign. Bobby Deol’s face, however, has been associated with some of Indian cinema’s most problematic portrayals of male power.

The film, titled “Unfiltered. Untamed. Unstoppable.”, presents a raw and reflective monologue on what it means to be an “asli mard” in a world that demands restraint, perfection, and silence, yet carries traditionally masculine traits. Deol, in a rugged and introspective tone, urges men to “be unapologetically themselves,” rejecting societal definitions of masculinity.

But while the campaign aims to free men from stereotypes, it is difficult to ignore the glaring contradiction of Deol’s on-screen personas, especially in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal and the MX Player series Aashram, which stand in stark contrast to the ad’s message of self-aware, responsible manhood.

In Animal (2023), Deol’s portrayal of the antagonist was defined by hyper-violence, patriarchal dominance, and emotional suppression, the very qualities the Beardo campaign appears to question. Similarly, his role as Baba Nirala in Aashram as a manipulative, misogynistic cult leader represents the abuse of male authority and charisma for personal gain.

The contrast between the brand’s progressivetone and the actor’s cinematic image (even if the character faces reprimand on the surface) does raise questions about authenticity in brand storytelling. A brand that chooses a face that represents the very archetypes it claims to challenge, risks blurring the message it's trying to convey.

Still, Beardo’s creative direction frames masculinity as layered, complex, and unfiltered, reflecting a broader industry trend of grooming brands moving beyond vanity to address identity and emotion. The challenge, however, lies in finding a consistent voice that aligns with the message, messenger and the general pulse of the audience it's aimed for.

For a brand that has long equated ruggedness with confidence, the campaign could have been a defining statement on introspection and evolution. But in featuring an actor whose recent roles embody the extremes of toxic masculinity, the film instead opens a larger conversation.

Beardo’s film may have intended to challenge stereotypes, but it has, perhaps inadvertently, reminded audiences of the fragile balance between representation and responsibility.

Watch the campaign film here: