Some Like it Salty

The advertisement is a typical example of how the brand,for years now,has riffed off the headlines to better market its butter,with the pithy slogans accompanying its instantly recognisable mascot,the Amul girl,becoming the subject of spirited debate and conversation. Some of the campaign’s popularity may be attributed to its simultaneously barbed and endearing humour,which has been chronicling the ups and downs of Indian history,one billboard at a time,since the first one came up in 1967.

“We always attempt to address topics that the whole nation feels strongly about,” says Rahul daCunha,whose advertising firm,daCunha Communications,handles the campaign. In the past couple of years,Amul ads have addressed issues ranging from the 2G scam and SM Krishna’s speech mix-up at the United Nations Security Council meeting,to the stand-off between Bollywood producers and multiplex owners. The hoardings and print ads change almost every three days,and it’s practically a race to keep up with the almost-daily breaking news cycle. “Given the state the country is in right now,there’s some new scam,some shocking event every other day. We follow a fairly hectic schedule. Sometimes we come up with a concept in the morning,execute it by the end of the day,and by the next morning,it is up for public viewing,” says daCunha.

The team behind the campaign,which belts out punchy slogans as prolifically as a media house slings headlines,is surprisingly small. It consists of daCunha,writer Manish Jhaveri,illustrator Jayant Rane and Shonali Khivasari,who is in charge of the final packaging of each advertisement. DaCunha,along with Jhaveri,is working on a book that will put together some of the most memorable Amul ads,and will also feature interviews with celebrities such as Amitabh Bachchan,Sachin Tendulkar and Shah Rukh Khan,who’ve frequently starred in Amul campaigns. “We must have run about 60 ads on Sachin till date,” jokes Jhaveri. “In fact,he can probably trace the trajectory of his career by looking at our ads.”

In the office of daCunha Communications,where we meet the team,it is clear that the Amul campaign holds particular pride of place. As soon as one enters,one is greeted by a large poster of the Amul girl,and many of the awards that line the walls of the conference room have been won by this campaign. When we meet,the team is busy working on the hot topic du jour — the British Royal Wedding. “We scan the newspapers,take note of the important topics,and then proceed. If a particular subject has a longer shelf life,then we hold it for a couple of more days and run with a topic that has a more immediate value,” says Jhaveri. What is really surprising,however,is that the client — Amul — has no idea what the next advertisement or hoarding is going to be until it has actually been put up for public viewing. “It’s a unique case in the advertising world,” says daCunha,with a laugh.

But this could also partly be because the campaign no longer just advertises the utterly,butterly deliciousness of Amul’s butter. Its main job now has evolved into feeling the pulse of the nation and saying what everyone is feeling,albeit in a pithier,wittier style. That’s also the main reason for the campaign’s success. “People have got a feeling of ownership as far as this campaign is concerned,” says daCunha,“They even send in their own ideas and illustrations. We then have to explain that it doesn’t exactly work that way.” Jhaveri is especially proud of the way that the campaign has influenced language. “We’d used the phrase ‘One-day Mataram’ in an ad when the Indian cricket team won the Titan Cup in 1996. Since then,it has been used everywhere. Whenever newspapers now report on one-day cricket,you can be sure that the phrase will crop up.” Of course,it is a constant challenge to keep coming up with clever punchlines,without falling into cliché traps,but the team is up to it.

This sense of collective ownership that the nation has over the Amul butter campaign,has perhaps one pitfall. “We,as a people,are sticklers for tradition,and don’t really deal with change very well. Which is why,certain motifs,like the Amul girl,can’t be changed in any manner,” says daCunha. The firm had to deal with criticism when they put the Amul girl in a short skirt in an ad about the IPL parties. “The complaint was that the look was too ‘forward’. Everyone feels like she’s their little girl and they don’t want to see her in dresses like that.” The public has also reacted adversely whenever the Amul Girl has been anyone but herself. “We made her Sonia Gandhi and people told us not to do that. She’s supposed to represent us,the common people,and so she should always be an observer.”

Another problem the creative team has had to deal with from time to time is that many people think they can use the campaign to promote themselves. “When Bheja Fry came out,it had very little marketing and yet it did so well. We made an ad that said ‘Butter Fry’ that became very popular. Soon,other filmmakers were asking why we weren’t promoting their movies!” says Jhaveri. Most of those who’ve been featured in the campaign have been happy about it. Bheja Fry director Sagar Bellary is one such; another is artist MF Husain,who was so tickled by the firm’s “Heroine Addict” hoarding,that he asked for some blow-ups for himself.

The popular campaign,however,has had its fair share of controversies too. When Jagmohan Dalmiya was caught up in corruption charges,one ad read,“Dalmiya Mein Kuch Kala Hai”. The former BCCI president was so incensed that he threatened legal action. Another time,the Shiv Sena took umbrage when the line for one ad,around the time of Ganesh Chaturti,said “Ganpati Bappa More Ghya”. “We have been in trouble for a few ads,but over time,we’ve figured that certain topics are better left untouched,” says Jhaveri. The Shiv Sena and the MNS,for instance,are spared the sharp edge of the butter knife. Given the volatile nature of the two parties,this approach is pragmatic. “We don’t want them to come to our office and create trouble. It’s just best to avoid them altogether,” says daCunha. That is why,when the MNS attacked pani puri vendors in Mumbai after one vendor was caught urinating into a vessel he used to serve his customers,daCunha and his associates didn’t take a political stand. “We ran an ad saying ‘Hani Puri’ (harmful puri),which focused on the hygiene,rather than the politics of the issue,” he says.

“We,as a nation,have lost our sense of humour in many matters,” says daCunha,“Take the example of Aditya Thackeray’s agitation against Such a Long Journey. If he’d done this 10 years ago,we would’ve run an ad on it and he would’ve laughed. Now,everyone takes such issues too seriously. If we dare to run an ad like this now,some party member will immediately create trouble.” His other complaint is people’s decreasing attention span. “Each ad stays up only for three days. After that,people have moved on to a new topic and we have to move on too. Certain important topics don’t get the attention they deserve,” he says,adding,“Of course,the country is going through a lot at the moment. There’s a new scam being unearthed every day. Under these circumstances,all we can do is give people something to laugh at.”