Shah Rukh Khan may not renew deal with Byju’s

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Shah Rukh Khan when it ends in September, people aware of the matter said. “With the edtech platform in serious trouble, Shah Rukh’s team is also hesitant to continue the association with the brand,” one of the people said. Byju’s had signed up the Bollywood actor in 2017 for an annual fee of close to Rs 4 crore, and he has been the edtech platform’s most visible face ever since.

Emails sent to Byju’s and Khan’s business management company seeking comment remained unanswered at press time Monday. This is not the first time Byju’s association with Khan has hit rough weather. In April this year, a district consumer disputes redressal commission in Madhya Pradesh fined Byju’s and the actor Rs 50,000 each “for not meeting teaching standards and false ads”.

The actor has been questioned by fans repeatedly on social media for continuing his association with Byju’s. In 2021, Byju’s had halted its advertisements with Khan during a controversy involving the Pathaan star’s son, Aryan. Byju’s has slashed thousands of jobs in the past year to cut costs amid a slowdown in the online education market and difficulties in raising funds.

India’s cricket board announced last weekend that online gaming company Dream11 replaced Byju’s as the lead sponsor for the India cricket team, ahead of the World Cup later this year. Meanwhile, representatives of three key investors in Byju’s — Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India), Prosus (earlier Naspers) and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative — resigned from the company’s board. Also, Deloitte quit as its statutory auditor, citing a delay in getting financial statements for FY22 which it was supposed to audit.