BusinessWhen festival marketing punches down on India’s most vulnerable children and families

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A Raksha Bandhan ad built a physical dustbin around the taunt “picked up from the garbage”—and no single Indian regulator was built to stop it. ASCI can only recommend, not compel; the CCPA's consumer-protection powers have never been tested on an argument like this; CARA has no jurisdiction over advertisers at all; and India's criminal code doesn't recognize adopted, abandoned, or institutionalized children as a protected group. My article traces one campaign through the regulatory blind spots it exposed, contrasts it against an ad that handled adoption with real care, and makes the case for closing the gap before next festival season produces a repeat. https://marksmendaily.com/business/when-festival-marketing-targets-indias-most-vulnerable/