Upset from Bollywood actor Ajay Devgn’s promotion of online rummy app Junglee Rummy, a young man from Nanded city, in Maharashtra named Vilas Prataprao Shinde recently addressed a letter to the action hero asking how much money he won playing online rummy.
Shinde says that all the youth who follow the Bollywood star in Maharashtra wants to how much has he won that made him promote Junglee Rummy to others, thereby claiming he is unsure whether the Singham-star plays the game, however, he provokes others to play. Several young people in Maharashtra use social media and have direct influence from these advertisements.
As reported by Dainik Prabhat, the letter says that actors should focus on inspiring their fans but instead, these advertisements make them believe that they can win constantly and start falling in a debt trap. He also questions the purpose of the advertisement and what benefits will it provide to the youth of Maharashtra.
While it is true that celebrity promotion might influence people to play or try out the game, online rummy is considered as a game of skill and is completely legal in India according to supreme court ruling.
Playing rummy is a game of skill
To play the game properly, players are required to have knowledge and skills of the game, which is not clearly stated in many advertisements. This becomes a problem from both the provider and the player side.
While provider fails to mention that people will need some level of skill and knowledge to actually win, players also need to think twice if they know how to play. Playing without knowledge and just by getting influenced from watching a celebrity is equally bad and may be financially risky.
To conclude, the players must note that each advertisement of such apps and platforms includes a disclaimer statement “These games may be habit-forming and addictive, players are advised to play at their own risk,” which clearly denotes that user discretion is at the top priority for playing such games.