We all live in a branded world and brands over a period of time have become an integral part of our lives. There are several brands trying different things to grab our attention and also a share of our wallet.
India being such a large country with its beauty in diversity has several local, national and international brands. Some dominant regional brand satraps that rule the roost locally and even in some cases nationally are Nirma, Ghadi, Chik, Chandrika etc. In addition to this there are few Multinationals (Indian , foreign) whose plethora of brands touch Indians in one way or the other , but not necessarily a singular brand. Prominent amongst those are Tata (Nano, Tea, Indica, Swach, Steel etc) Hindustan Unilever (Lux, Dove, Breeze, Axe, Lakme, Liril, Sunsilk, Ponds) Procter and Gamble (Pantene, Head and Shoulders, Pampers, Whisper) Star TV ( Star Mazaa, Star Plus) , BCCL (Times of India, Economic Times, Navbharat times etc) amongst others and there are a very few brands that you could actually say have become deeply ingrained in the Indian psyche and have become second nature to us Indians.
This thought set me thinking about brands that touch the majority of Indians in one way or the other so much so that they have become second nature to us.
India being such a large country with its beauty in diversity, there are In addition to the above However there are a few brands that come to mind that most Indians don’t seem to do without. The brands listed below do not necessarily comprise of the complete list and the reader is welcome to help make this a comprehensive list. Also the brands listed are not necessarily a ranking of India’s top brands in chronological order.
Say Cheese: The frothing white toothpaste brand “Colgate” that most Indians Kiss Good morning to is a brand that most Indians have known for ages, so much so that a few years back the name itself was synonymous with the category. Other well known toothpastes giving strong competition to Colgate would be Pepsodent and Close-up along with our humble Neem datoon that even today most rural folk in India use to shine their dentures
Who is the Fairest of them all?: Indians are well known for their obsession for Gori Chamdhi, and this obsession has resulted in the launch of a slew of brands promising to make all Indian women a shade fairer that will result in more marriage proposals, more career opportunities and so on. (I am yet to come across any individual who can vouch for this though). “Fair and Lovely” rules the roost in this category, and finds a place in most Indian Households and is part of the daily beauty regime of most Indian Women. Another interesting thing about “Fair and lovely” is that though it was launched as fairness cream for women, men also started realizing its “Perceived benefits” and became large consumers of it. A result of this is launch of more fairness creams exclusively for men like Fair and Handsome, Garnier Men etc.
The Great Indian Medicine Cabinet: One of a few Advertisements that I distinctly remember from my childhood goes something like this – Ting Tong ... Door opens, “Zukam bad gaya na, kyon gaya tha bahar” “Happy Birthday Mummy”. Any Guesses for what brand this is? This along with the extremely hummable jingle _____ ki Goli lo khichkhich durr karo” or the Haan Bahi hann are deeply other pieces of communication deeply etched in my mind. They all belong to one of my most trusted brand – Vicks. Even today in most households, Vicks (primarily the Vaporub) finds a prominent place in our Medicine Cabinets and is a trusted brand by Indians for all cough and Cold Ailments. Other brands that you are most likely to find in the “Indian Medicine cabinet” are Crocin, D’cold, Strepsils, Dettol, Dispirin, Digene, Band-Aid, (Waterproof ones) Soframycin, Zandu Balm each one an unique brand in itself trusted by Indians to cure one minor ailment or the other.
Godrej Storwel: Every Indian Home has one, either inherited from ones parents or received as dowry. In the Indian context the ‘Godrej Storwel’ is not a mere piece of furniture, where one keeps his entire wardrobe. It is a place for keeping all precious valuables, belongings, like jewellery, property papers, money etc along with priceless memories like wedding and photo albums etc. Also symbolically when a Mother in law hands over the keys of it to her new daughter, it is a sign of her being given the responsibilities and possession of the family wealth.
Utterly Butterly Delicious: No matter how diverse our cuisines, Amul Butter has always found a place on our dining tables, and has been consumed by all young and old Indians. Not to mention the Amul Girl who has always melted our hearts and brought a smile on our face with her wit and humour. Amul Butter is truly “The Taste Of India”
2 minutes : A testimony to the fact that all Indians have loved Maggi is evident in the current packaging of Maggi, which depicts stories revolving around this cult brand. So you have stories revolving around “Anda walla Maggi” to “Birthday Surpise Maggi” and many more interesting stories.
Connecting Indians: A few years back no one would have thought that a single hand held device would completely take over our lives. The truth is a mobile phone has become second nature to us and most Indians own a mobile phone and the preferred brand is Nokia, though the company has lately come under pressure from our Chinese counterparts that are being aggressively marketed. Nokia had initially also launched specific “Made in India” phones with features like a torch, Regional languages, radio etc. Along with the penetration of mobile phones right to the interiors of India, Service providers like Airtel, Reliance, BSNL, Idea keeps India connected to each other.
Other brands that I feel touches Most Indians lives would include Hero Honda, Lux, Chavi Matchboxes, Cycle Agarbattis, K serials , Airtel,
The above list is in no way a comprehensive list and there may be brands that have been inadvertently left out. Please feel free to contribute to this list and make it an exhaustive one J
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