Former James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan has been asked by health officials in Delhi to explain why he features in a commercial for a mouth freshener linked to chewing tobacco.

Health officials said they had issued a notice requiring Brosnan to justify his starring in the ad for ‘Pan Bahar,’ a paan masala brand. The makers of ‘Pan Bahar’ however, insist that their product does not contain nicotine.

Delhi Health Department official SK Arora said that they saw Pierce Brosnan's posters advertising Pan Bahar (a paan masala brand) at tobacco shops in Delhi in the last fortnight and added that the authorities had reached out to Brosnan through Pan Bahar company and even through his Twitter account for the same but had not heard back.

He asserted that Brosnan could face a fine of Rs. 5,000 ($78) or up to two years in jail if he did not answer within 10 days.