Honasa Consumer, the parent company of Mamaearth and The Derma Co., has reportedly filed a lawsuit against Hindustan Unilever (HUL) in the Delhi High Court, alleging that a recent Lakme advertisement is “misleading” and “disparaging.”
As per CNBC, the dispute centers around Lakme’s “SPF Lie Detector Test” campaign, which Honasa claims unfairly targets rival products—particularly one that resembles The Derma Co.’s sunscreen. The next court hearing is scheduled for April 17, where both sides will present their arguments.
The controversy began after Lakme launched an ad promoting its Sun Expert SPF 50 sunscreen, suggesting that many digital-first sunscreen brands overstate their SPF claims—offering as low as SPF 20 despite claiming SPF 50. The ad cited in-vivo testing (testing on humans) as proof of Lakme’s superior product verification, a method also used by The Derma Co.
Honasa argued that the campaign indirectly attacks its brand and misleads consumers. During the preliminary hearing, Justice Amit Bansal noted that the ad appears to be disparaging and has requested a response from HUL.
Adding fuel to the rivalry, Honasa cofounder Ghazal Alagh mocked Lakme in a now-deleted LinkedIn post, claiming the brand copied The Derma Co.’s sunscreen formula and packaging. In a bold marketing move, Honasa also placed a billboard beside Lakme’s ad reading: “Hey Lakme, congratulations on finally getting SPF 50 in-vivo tested. Welcome to The Derma Co. standard.”
At 2:20 PM, Honasa shares were trading slightly higher at ₹230.10 on the BSE.
