Hyderabad, Nov 10 (IANS): The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) has said it would send a legal notice to the Tollywood actor Allu Arjun and bike taxi app Rapido for allegedly tarnishing the State-owned transport operator's image.

TSRTC Managing Director V.C. Sajjanar has taken serious exception to a Rapido advertisement that features Allu Arjun. In the commercial, which is being aired on YouTube, the actor is seen telling people that RTC buses take more time like cooking an ordinary dosas, but Rapido would be so fast and safe that it would prepare a masala dosa in the same time.

The corporation said in a statement that the commercial had drawn flak from many people, including RTC commuters, as well as its admirers, staff and retired employees. "They are condemning the negative manner in which RTC buses have been shown in comparison to the Rapido service. Demeaning the TSRTC will be tolerated neither by the TSRTC management, nor by the commuters, admirers and our own and retired employees," the statement said.

Sajjanar, an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, said actors should appear in advertisements that promote public transport for an environmentally cleaner society.

He requested all actors, celebrities and eminent personalities, who are in a position to influence public opinion, to desist from promoting content that is "detrimental to public transportation and public good."