'Trashy Advertisement': Chinese Netizens Slam Dettol's Ad Aimed At Cleaning Up 'Toxic Men'

Last Updated:June 23, 2026, 21:53 IST

Dettol apologises after China advert on gender bias sparks backlash, critics slam its portrayal of women as ad is pulled and brand defends its intent.

Dettol, a British hygiene brand, has been forced to issue an apology over an advertisement in China that it claimed was aimed to call out gender bias.

According to BBC, the five-minute-long advert for a multipurpose disinfectant, styled like a micro drama, starts out with a man looking for a partner who is “clean" and “not tainted by other men".

He ends his first relationship by calling his girlfriend “tainted by other men". “No wonder you’re so experienced — someone else trained you before, and I can have past relationships, but my future wife must not," the male character allegedly says in the advert.

After this, he lauded his new girlfriend: “I’m lucky to have met this girl; she’s pure and untainted by other men. It’s not easy to find such an innocent girl."Later, when his new girlfriend calls him out for his misogyny and breaks up, Dettol is presented as a solution against “toxic men [who] are just like bacteria".

China’s Reaction

The advertisement was met with strong opposition from Chinese netizens. Following this, the brand has apologised and also immediately pulled off the video.

“What a trashy advertisement. It’s left me speechless," a user wrote on Weibo, China’s X-like platform.

“What a hopeless company. What is their senior management doing?" read another comment. “I’m never using Dettol again. There are so many brands in the market after all."

Manya Koetse, who runs the Eye on Digital China newsletter, called the campaign “quite a mess for a brand whose entire business revolves around cleanliness".

“Even if the intention was to portray the male character as being in the wrong, the message was conveyed so poorly that it backfired spectacularly," she said.

What Dettol Said In Its Defence

Dettol on Monday issued a statement explaining the intent for the advertisement. “We recognise that it has offended many people, especially women. We take responsibility for any negligence in creating and reviewing the content of the advert," it said.

BBC quoted the brand highlighting that it was founded with a mission “to protect families’ health," adding, “but we are well aware that true protection also lies in safeguarding the dignity of every individual and their right to be treated equally."

News world 'Trashy Advertisement': Chinese Netizens Slam Dettol's Ad Aimed At Cleaning Up 'Toxic Men'

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