Goa says no to Sachin, Deepika and Kareena

Sachin Tendulkar, Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan, all queued up to become brand ambassadors for Goa but the state does not need any star power to promote itself, Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar told reporters here Wednesday.

Parulekar said Goa was already a celebrity in its own right and there was no need to hunt for brand ambassadors for publicity.

"We have received proposals from marketing agencies that represent actress Deepika Padukone, Sachin Tendulkar or Kareena Kapoor and her husband Saif (Ali Khan), to sign them up as Brand Ambassadors for Goa," Parulekar said.

But he said the state government was not keen on roping in any celebrity as a brand ambassador to promote Goa.

"Our image is such that any tourist will choose Goa over other destinations," Parulekar said.

Goa had experimented with hiring brand ambassadors for the tourist destination when they roped in starlet Prachi Desai as brand ambassador a couple of years back.