(Do note that this is not an exhaustive list, for it cannot be. We have attempted to pick up a few standout brands to go on a happy walk with, down memory lane. This is for illustrative purposes only.)

Amul: The Delicious Survivor

The ‘Milkman of India’ and father of India’s White Revolution, Dr Verghese Kurien, is not just credited with revolutionising the country’s dairy sector with Anand Cooperative in Gujarat, transforming the lives of 1.5 crore farmers, he also gave us Amul. After it was set up in 1946, Amul came up with the launch of its branded butter in 1965.

Year 1970 saw the launch of milk powder and baby food, and the 1980s brought in Stamina, India’s first sports drink from Amul. Launch upon launch saw Amul become a household name and a global force, giving us 200 sub-brands, each a world-leader in its own right. By 2007 Amul became Asia’s largest milk brand and 2023 revenues were at Rs 59,000 crore. 

What was behind this meteoric rise? Ad-man Sylvester da Cunha gave us the Amul Butter Girl, who spread great nationalist stories; she still does. Amul’s success lies not in the numbers, but in the model, which sticks to the basics – cooperatives, empowerment of communities, dedication to quality, and national pride. Its inherent ground-level emotive appeal with India tells you why the best global business schools use Amul as a case study.

Surf: Soak Them, Rinse Them

In a country fanatic about scrubbing clothes with soap bars, it was a tall order to bring in an expensive powder version, even one that claimed to simplify the job while being kind to our ladies’ hands. Hindustan Unilever did just that in 1959, much to everyone’s chagrin, making Surf perhaps the first premium brand to hit the Indian market, barely a decade after independence.

Surf offered the promise of soaking and rinsing clothes, no scrubbing, to remove the most stubborn of stains. It worked and over time, Surf also scrubbed out the stubborn Indian and taught us ‘gentle cleaning’.

It was no wash-over or walk-over, though, and Surf had rivals like Nirma and 555 strutting in, their own versions of detergent powders spouting foam. An India that had little access to television and newspaper ads suddenly saw Sundays being spent with door-to-door salespersons demonstrating the ‘no-scrub’ wonder while the lady of the house served chai and pakodas.

The jury is still out on whether it was the eats that did the trick, but Surf frothed its way into Indian hearts and bathrooms. 

Surf’s ‘Daag Achche Hain’ ad campaign was the final nail, bullet and dagger for competing brands and then began its dominance, despite prices being hiked regularly. Today, Surf controls 20 per cent of the over Rs 45,000-crore Indian detergent market, projected to grow at 5.89 per cent annually.

Lux: Soap Opera Continues

The same business house that gave India its best-selling detergent brand also gave flight to the dreams of the nation – while women bathed using Lux soaps and turned into oomph-generators, men appreciated the angelic metamorphosis, some even with closed eyes.

Lux stands out in terms of its path to success, using delectable advertising and serious star power to get the masses to grab the soap bar. Since 1920s, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor and Audrey Hepburn have figured in Lux ads in the US, as have Leela Chitnis, Kareena Kapoor, and Alia Bhatt in India.

We have also had Hema Malini and Aishwarya Rai pouting to Lux’s bubbles. Positioned at first as ‘the soap the stars use’, Lux leveraged these endorsements to become a household name, quite the craze.

Lux was brought to India in 1941 and soon gained an iconic status, with its tagline ‘Filmi sitaaro ka manpasand saabun’ (Beauty soap of the stars). There were enough and more soap brands out there, by way of competition and challengers, but none could really get a grip on Lux, and the opportunity slipped through all fingers except the intended ones – that of the customers.

Today, Lux continues to follow the same ad path and has roped in Suhana Khan, Shah Rukh Khan’s daughter, as its brand ambassador. Incidentally, SRK is amongst the few male stars to have featured in a Lux ad. Now an Indian brand, manufactured by Hindustan Unilever Limited and marketed in over 100 countries, Lux is amongst the highest-selling soap brands in India and around the world.

Thums Up: Thundering Others Out

If there is one brand that stands out for sheer tenacity, adamance and refusal to go dry, it is Thums Up. How many soft drink marquees can claim to have taken on Coke-Pepsi and lived to brag about it?

Today, 5 per cent of global soft drink sales (US$500 billion, around Rs 40 lakh crore) come from India. Go back 30 years and the number was still humongous, but Thums Up gave Coca-Cola and PepsiCo parched throats, eating into their profitability.

So strong was Thums Up’s appeal that it was bought by Coca-Cola with the express intent of killing it, but with the market clamouring for it, the American MNC was forced to bring to revive it. As if to rub cola dust into the wounds, sales skyrocketed after the relaunch.

Erstwhile soft drink king Ramesh Chauhan, who launched Thums Up, says: “It is not a question of Thums Up being successful. People said it tasted like a cough mixture, but it became part of India’s culture. It can’t be called my brand or Coca-Cola’s brand. It is the nation’s brand.”

Maruti: Changing India’s Gears

What began as clucking non-acceptance by India’s masses turned within a year into interminable waiting lists and lifelong love when Maruti Udyog arrived in India. Its first offering in India, the humble Maruti 800, was called ‘tin ka dabba’ (Tin Box) and ‘jhuka pehelwan’ (Bent-over Wrestler), as it was too much to be absorbed for its automotive and aerodynamic qualities by Indians used to Ambassadors, Premier Padminis and boat-like CBU imports.

How wrong an entire nation was…

In just a few years, Marutis became the drivers’ preferred choice, with everyone clamouring for easy manoeuvrability and quick ignition. The addition of the 4x4 Gypsy was a game-changer, as was the Maruti 1000, which soon transformed into a 1300-cc multi-point fuel injection model, the Esteem.

A euphoric India fell prey to the Gold Revolution, as blood in the veins was replaced by petrol. Diesel was added later to pumping hearts when a bevy of foreign automakers descended upon India.

Today, the number of serious auto firms in the country ranges upwards of a dozen, but Maruti Udyog, now Maruti Suzuki India, continues to be the indefatigable leader. The fleet has been upgraded, as has been the look and feel with the launch of sub-brands like Nexa, and the first Japanese kid on the Indian block rules on the back of emotion, dependability, and its dealer and service networks.

Many Other Warrior-Brands

As stated earlier, there are others who have carried the torch through tough times and come out shining. Amongst them are Boroline, Steel Authority of India, Life Insurance Corporation, Atlas Cycles, Parle G, Dalda, Godrej, Dabur… We request readers to add the names of those they feel should be included in future compilations.

As we wait for those to come in, we will focus shortly on some of India’s ad campaigns that have helped reshape the world’s biggest marketplace.

(The author is a New-Delhi based independent journalist and commentator. Views expressed are personal)