PETALING JAYA, July 26 — Acclaimed Malaysian filmmaker Nam Ron is appalled that his image has been used to promote male sex enhancement supplements without his consent.

The 52-year-old whose real name is Shahili Abdan has issued a stern warning to the business owner to remove his photo from the ad or face legal repercussions.

The actor took to Facebook saying, "this is madness” and that it was a crime to use images without permission to promote a product.

"I saw the ad after a Facebook user sent it to me three days ago, so I shared it on my Facebook,” he told mStar.

"I’ve asked them to remove the post but they haven’t done so until now.

"If they’re stubborn and refuse to take it down, I will take legal action.”

Nam Ron added that what the supplements company did was against the law and their actions painted him in a bad light as a celebrity.

"This shouldn’t have happened, they must seek permission before using (my photo).

"When I read comments on the post, some had negative views and others laughed at it thinking it was hilarious.

"But it isn’t funny because it’s unethical and they can’t use other people’s images next to their products.”

The Malaysian Film Festival best director winner advised entrepreneurs to conduct business ethically without using celebrities’ photographs as they please.

"I’m okay if they approached me and asked for my consent instead of just using it.

"We have ethics and this means not taking the easy way out, they should have asked me beforehand, they won"t necessarily have to pay,” he said.

The Health Ministry has previously warned the public to exercise caution when purchasing sex-enhancing supplements that may contain banned substances.