Case Study

Coca-Cola’s Branding Strategies in India

Kaushik Mukerjee*

T
he Indian cola industry saw a major change in the early 1990s with the re-entry
of Coca-Cola into the market. The MNCs had been eyeing the Indian market
ever since the economy was liberalized and the fabled 200 million middle class
customers proved to be a great attraction. However, in the early 1990s, the Indian cola
market was dominated by Indian brands like Thums Up. When Coca-Cola entered the
Indian market in 1993, the production of soft drink bottles were about 3000 million.
By the turn of the new millennium, the production had doubled but Coca-Cola was still
not seeing profits in India. Further, its aggressive pricing strategies have come under flak
from various marketing pundits. The company adopted a number of innovative branding
strategies for gaining penetration into the Indian market. Would these branding
strategies enable Coca-Cola to achieve its objectives?

The Coca-Cola Brand

In May 1886, a pharmacist called John Pemberton in Atlanta (located in the state of
Georgia, USA) created a caramel colored syrup which was christened Coca-Cola (Coke)
by his partner Frank M Robinson. Initially, Coca-Cola was sold through a soda fountain
wherein customers could buy a glass of drink for five cents. At that time, on an average,
nine drinks were sold every day. The caption ‘delicious and refreshing’ was used to
promote the brand. As early as the 19th century, the branding strategies of Coca-Cola
included celebrity endorsements by music hall performer Hilda Clark.
Some of the advertisements used for branding Coca-Cola became a part of people’s
consciousness and events in their lives were shaped around the brand. For example,
every year before Christmas an advertisement shows the Christmas trucks and the jingle
that says ‘holidays are coming—holidays are coming’. A customer claims: “It isn’t
Christmas until I’ve seen that …I have to congratulate Coca-Cola on capturing the
festive spirit so well”. In the late 1940s, Coke used the tagline ‘Where there’s Coke
there’s hospitality’. At that time, when the world was strife-torn after the Second World
War, hospitality was a very sought after virtue. Families aspired to be hospitable and
socially well-regarded.
In the 1970s, the hippie culture and individualism was the rage and the Coke ad
reflected the ideology through the line ‘I’d like to buy the world a Coke’. The lyrics and
the music became very popular and were remembered even after several decades. In the
1980s, the branding was done using the rather pithy statement ‘Coke is it’ which

* Associate Dean, The Icfai Business School, Pune, India. E-mail: kmukerjee@ibsindia.org

34
© 2008 The Icfai University Press. All Rights Reserved.
The Icfai Journal of Brand Management, Vol. V, No. 1, 2008
appealed immensely to the teenagers. The 1990s saw the usage of the line ‘Always
Coca-Cola’ – perhaps a reflection of the economic recession when people aspired for
stability. The new millennium saw a very simplistic approach through ‘Coca-Cola –
Enjoy’ which summed up the candid approach people were taking towards life in times
when globalization was the norm and people’s work lives and personal lives had become
seamless. The culmination of this approach is evident in the line ‘The Coke side of life’
which was created in 2006. The slogans used by Coca-Cola since inception have been
presented in Exhibit 1.

Coca-Cola in India
Coca-Cola was present in India till the late 1970s when a Government Order forced it
to leave the Indian market. However, after economic liberalization in the early 1990s,
it re-entered the Indian market in 1993. The entry into India was made more emphatic
when Coca-Cola acquired the leading Indian soft drink brands – Thums Up, Limca,
Gold Spot, etc. Also, by buying out the bottlers, Coca-Cola ensured that they exercised
total control over the Indian soft drink market.
Coca-Cola India invested over $1 bn in building new production facilities, waste
water treatment plants, developing marketing and distribution systems, etc.
The company directly employed over 6,000 people while its operations created indirect
employment for more than 1,25,000 people. To ensure enough production and ready
availability of its products, Coca-Cola had 25 wholly owned bottling operations in
addition to 24 franchisee owned bottling operations. To supplement their efforts,
a number of contract packers were used. For effective distribution, apart from the
10-tonne trucks, open-bay three wheelers were used which could easily navigate the
narrow lanes that are a part of India’s cities and small towns. Using these strategies,
Coca-Cola ensured high penetration of its products—even in the rural areas.
Coca-Cola India has used very modern plants for its operations. Its bottling plant at
Kaladera (in Rajasthan) was awarded the Golden Peacock Environment Management
Award in 2005 for its world-class environment practices. Previously, its other bottling
plants at Baddi (in Himachal Pradesh), Ameenpur (in Andhra Pradesh) and Dasna
(in Uttar Pradesh) had been bestowed with the award. To ensure good corporate
governance, Coca-Cola India set up the Indian Advisory Board comprising eminent
personalities. The board is chaired by Naresh Chandra, the former Indian ambassador
to the US. Personalities such as Deepak Parekh, S M Datta, Sunil Munjal, Amjad Ali
Khan are presently members of the board.

Brand Positioning Strategies of Coca-Cola in India

When Coca-Cola was re-launched in India, it promoted the brand using advertisements
that used communication approaches more suitable for western markets. However, the
brand quickly adapted its communication to ensure proper appeal to Indian customers.
In the late 1990s Coca-Cola began using Indianized themes to appeal to the Indian
customers. It realized that its communication needed to appeal to the youth.

Case Study 35
Also, Coca-Cola was aware that the Indian youth respected traditional Indian values even
if they wore western clothes and listened to western pop music. Taking these aspects into
consideration, it created an advertisement showing an Indian college-goer coming home
for the Diwali holidays. The young man was clad in trendy clothes (blue jeans and
T-shirt) and even sported an ear-stud to signify his contemporary style. He was shown
touching the feet of his grandparents while the Diwali fireworks lit up in the background.
This brand communication helped in creating a personality of Coca-Cola that the Indian
youth could relate with and it resulted in a suitable positioning for the brand.
Coca-Cola also realized that the Indian youth were obsessed with Hindi movie stars
and cricketers. Therefore, if these stars could be roped in for the advertisements the
connection of the target segment with the brand could be enhanced.

Brand Associations
In 2000, Coca-Cola chose the leading Hindi movie stars and also some of the best
cricketers to enable proper brand associations. The intent was to ensure that the
celebrities who would endorse the brand would help to have a rub-off effect of their
personas on the Coca-Cola brand. Since a large number of Indian youth aspired to
emulate these celebrities, the association would result in creating the right identity
for the brand.
Coca-Cola signed up Hrithik Roshan (the heartthrob of the nation during the period
2000-02 owing to the stupendous success of his films like ‘Kaho Na Pyar Hai’) for the
campaign that used the tagline ‘Jo chao ho jaye’ (meaning whatever you wish may turn
true). This value proposition must have made sense to the youth since they fantasize
about becoming hugely successful and popular. The unbridled attitude of the youth was
reflected through the actor and the brand. One advertisement was created to
commemorate Diwali which is the festival that heralds hope and instils a sense of joy
into the Indian youth. The connection with the target segment was immediate owing
to the fireworks in the background and the message ‘Happy Diwali’.
Coca-Cola also enabled proper brand associations by signing up cricketers like
Virendra Sehwag and Sunil Gavaskar. They created a situation wherein the batting
legend Sunil Gavaskar was shown giving tips to the upcoming batsman Virendra Sehwag
but both had their eyes on the bottle of Coke. Given the high adulation for cricketers
in India, and the religion-like fervor evoked by cricket, the brand Coca-Cola became
associated with the most popular sport. Again, the carefree approach of the youth was
captured through the caption ‘life ho to aisi’ (meaning life should be like that).
Coca-Cola had realized that to really get into the hearts of the youth in India, the
attitudes and habits of the youth needed to be captured through the advertisements.
Therefore, it needed to show the youth doing things that were a part of their daily
routine. With the advent of the internet, a large number of the youth from middle-class
and upper-class families in India had got hooked to chatting on the internet through
chat sites. It gave an opportunity to bond with like minded young people from around

36 The Icfai Journal of Brand Management, Vol. V, No. 1, 2008

the world and also offered the chance of mingling with the opposite sex. This held the
potential of meeting one’s life partner as well. Therefore, the youth spent significant
time chatting on the internet and were quite obsessed with the idea of chatting with
strangers. Coca-Cola created an advertisement using leading actors Aamir Khan and
Aishwarya Rai who were shown as chat mates using the password ‘Coke ho jaaye’
(meaning let’s have a Coke). The chat mates serendipitously meet at a fast food joint
where the password helps them to recognize each other. It must have given a déjà vu
feeling to a number of young people and the brand Coca-Cola became an integral part
of their psyche. The caption at the end of the ad said, ‘Jo chaho ho jai – Coca-Cola enjoy’.
The storyboard with Aamir Khan and Aishwarya Rai is shown in Exhibit 2.

Branding for Targeting the Mass Market

Coca-Cola was keen to tap the large Indian market and soon realized that the brand
needed to possess mass appeal. This meant that the brand’s positioning and value
proposition needed to be suitably altered. The brand had been targeting upper class
customers who had spending power but the volumes were low. In order to ensure high
volumes, Coca-Cola needed to penetrate rural markets, small towns and target the lower
income group customers living in cities.
The caption ‘thanda matlab Coca-Cola’ (meaning chilled means Coca-Cola) was
chosen in 2003 to ensure mass appeal of the brand in India. The reason behind this
choice was obvious. In India, the common people tended to refer to any chilled drink
using the generic name ‘thanda’ which means chilled. Therefore, the intent of Coca-Cola
was to own the generic term for chilled drinks in the customers’ minds. This caption
was capable of enabling penetration into the small towns and the rural markets wherein
the generic term ‘thanda’ was very prevalent. The urban population that was not
westernized also used this term extensively.
The next step in mass-market branding was choosing a suitable actor for enabling
brand association. Coca-Cola roped in the popular actor Aamir Khan who was young
and zestful. However, the brand of the actor was not encashed upon but his acting skills
were used to good effect. This was done by getting Aamir Khan to play various roles in
the advertisements that represented the various sections of Indian customers.

The Self-Styled Hero

To communicate the message to the masses, Aamir Khan played the role of the Indian
self-styled hero. This was the quintessential macho man who had little formal education
and was heavily influenced by the heroes in movies. So, he was shown wearing a cheap
leather jacket, unkempt hair and lot of accessories that enabled him to assert his
machismo. His manner of speaking was rude and domineering and chose soft targets to
exhibit his superiority. The character was shown ordering the counter man at a small
food stall for giving him a ‘thanda’. The non-descript bottle given in return was scorned
by the hero who educated him using the caption ‘thanda matlab Coca-Cola’. The diktat
was simple—whenever anybody asked for ‘thanda’, Coca-Cola was to be served.

Case Study 37
The character played by Aamir Khan was representative of the aspirations of the lower
middle classes who were heavily influenced by the film heroes and dreamed of aping
these characters in real life. Also, the use of the local lingo instead of chaste language
enabled the masses to relate with the brand easily.

The Punjabi Farmer

Another advertisement depicted Aamir Khan in the role of a Punjabi farmer. Punjab is
an agriculturally rich state in India and the people have a vibrant and carefree attitude
towards life. They are hard working people who also like to enjoy the good things of life.
Therefore, the ad showed three thirsty young girls getting off their car and walking into
the Punjabi farmer’s land for a ‘thanda’. The farmer jested with the girls in his cavalier
style and created some drama by using the well to pull up a bucket containing bottles
of Coca-Cola. The sight of the bottles made the girls scream with delight but the
message was clear—even the rural masses were referring to Coke when they wanted a
chilled drink. The storyboard of this advertisement is given in Exhibit 3.

The Bengali Babu

Aamir Khan also portrayed the Bengali babu who goes to a restaurant with his wife and
children. His bohemian demeanor and laid back attitude result in his wife’s
remonstrations at his mannerisms. She admonishes him and tells the waiter in Hindi
(albeit with a Bengali accent) to bring ‘thanda’ for everyone. This ad also reinforces the
message of Coca-Cola representing any chilled drink and by showing characters
belonging to various parts of India, the communication was expected to create a
pan-Indian awareness of the brand.
In 2003, another significant step taken by Coca-Cola for enhanced rural penetration was
the launch of the 200 ml bottle for Rs. 5. The test marketing done in Andhra Pradesh had
yielded favorable results and the new bottle was launched across India. The advertisement
to showcase the offering (especially to entice the rural customers) was done using a typical
rural setting. In this advertisement, Aamir Khan played the government official who is
revered by the rural folks. He is eyed by the local belles since he is the ‘babu’ who wears a
safari suit, dark glasses and wields immense power over every villager. The ‘babu’ finds that
the village retail shop owner attempting to sell the 200 ml bottle for Rs. 6 to the local
women. He confronts the shop owner and using typical rustic humor, gets the shop owner
to return the extra rupee. The advertisement was representative of any Indian village and
the rural population could easily identify with the entire story. Most importantly, Aamir
Khan was portraying a typical village personality instead of being portrayed as a glamorous
actor who drinks Coca-Cola. The storyboard is shown in Exhibit 4.

Updating the Brand Communication—the Youth’s Changing Psyche

Coca-Cola was careful in ensuring that its rural market focus did not happen at the cost
of originally targeted segment—the youth belonging to the middle and upper classes.
The communication of the brand had to be updated to ensure that it kept pace with the
youth’s changing psyche. A significant change among the youth was the assertiveness of

38 The Icfai Journal of Brand Management, Vol. V, No. 1, 2008

young women. More and more women were getting good college education and joining the
workplace. They refused to submit meekly as their mothers had done. The advertisement
featured in Exhibit 5 was aired in 2006 wherein Aishwarya Rai played the role of a college
girl. She represented the quintessential Indian middle class girl who respected Indian
values and traditions. This was evident from her traditional attire, well-combed hair, etc.
The young men studying at her college made passes at her using the Coke bottle. She was
shown confronting the men and even giving them some lessons on how the Coke bottle
could be used for various kinds of whistling tunes. The men were embarrassed and accepted
defeat in the face of her boldness and assertive gestures. The tagline ‘thande ka tadka’
(meaning chilled drink made sizzling) supported the storyline of the advertisement and
also reflected the new attitude of the Indian youth.

The Pesticide Controversy

Coca-Cola was hit by the pesticide controversy (see Exhibit 6) and needed to do damage
control to ensure that its brand image was not tarnished. Again, the brand managers of
Coke relied on Aamir Khan to reaffirm customers’ faith in the brand. In this
advertisement (shown in Exhibit 7), the actor Aamir Khan tells that as a patron of the
brand, he was also concerned after reading various reports on pesticide residues in Coke.
The advertisement shows Aamir Khan being given a tour of Coke’s factory and the 400
quality control tests that are a part of the production process. The brand communication
was expected to be effective since Aamir Khan is a popular actor and his testifing to the
safety of the product was expected to have a reassuring effect on the customers reassured.

Brand Resonance – Coke’s Branding Strategies

Coke’s branding strategies had to go beyond brand positioning and associations.
To ensure that customers had formed a harmonious relationship with the brand, the
objective of brand resonance had to be achieved. If resonance was achieved, customers
were expected to regard the brand as a friend or a close acquaintance with which they
shared a bond. To enable this kind of bond formation, the brand needed to find a place
in the customers’ hearts (in addition to their minds).
The youth in India were increasingly getting hooked to the internet and a website
enabled brands to enjoy a one to one communication with customers. This was a big step
towards brand resonance where the customer knew that s/he was directly interacting
with the brand. With this objective and to enable high brand engagement, Coca-Cola
set up the website www.myenjoyzone.com.
The site was used for organizing contests. The promotional contest received over 7.5
lakh entries (7,50,000) from across the country. The contest called ‘Coke Kuch Na Kaho’
had the winners spend an evening with Aishwarya Rai at Mumbai’s exotic location ‘The
Resort’. This was a great hit with the youth and participation was enabled through
strategic partners. The Red FM Channel in Kolkota was particularly successful and
attracted over 25,000 participants. Reliance Infocomm’s three lakh customers also
participated in the contest.

Case Study 39
 The website myenjoyzone.com was upgraded in September 2003 and offered more
features like a virtual walkthrough of Coke City. Further, a number of interactive
contests were on offering in various blocks that made up Coke City. The winners of
contests could get Coke merchandize and also interact with celebrities through the site.

Resonance Initiatives for Rural Customers

Coca-Cola’s brand resonance initiatives were not restricted to the upmarket customers.
The brand was trying to target rural markets and therefore suitable initiatives needed
to be undertaken.
A very common problem in rural areas has been the depletion of water resources and
Coca-Cola has taken the initiative in several places across India to launch rainwater
harvesting projects. These projects have been initiated in places such as Rajasthan, Kerala,
Andhra Pradesh, Delhi. This ensures that the local population is assured of access to water
and through the brand’s involvement with local issues, resonance is achieved.
Apart from water conservation, Coca-Cola has also been involved in
environment-friendly exercises such as planting of trees, organizing lectures on
sustainable environment. The brand has also been involved in educational issues
through literacy mission drives and social empowerment programs.

Future Outlook
The rural market penetration was attempted using the 200 ml bottle priced at Rs. 5.
But this move came in for heavy criticism by industry observers and the results may not
have been as per expectations since Coca-Cola was forced to increase prices soon
afterwards. Also, schools have been waging a battle against fast food and aerated drinks
and several prestigious schools have gone to the extent of banning such products from
their campuses. To counter the outcry against the drinking of colas, Coca-Cola has
quoted studies published in the Indian Journal of Clinical Practice to stress that studies
conducted found no link between carbonated soft drink consumption and risk of
esophageal adenocarcinoma (the paper is available at http://www.coca-colaindia.com/
faqs/pdf/Coca_Cola_Dilemma.pdf). However, it remains to be seen whether these moves
will be enough for Coca-Cola to ensure a better image for the brand.
The branding initiatives of Coca-Cola have been built around well-planned
strategies. In 2007, the Coca-Cola brand adopted a more egalitarian approach by
attempting to portray the brand as the choice of people from all parts of India. The
harmonious integration of all communities is evident on any long-distance train and
therefore, the advertisement showed people from various communities, of diverse age
groups, choosing Coke as their drink. The caption ‘sabka thanda ek’ (meaning the choice
of chilled drink for all is the same) exemplifies the egalitarian approach. The storyboard
is shown in Exhibit 8. Is this the right approach for Coke with regard to its brand
building in India? According to reports, Coca-Cola wants India to be among its top
three markets in the long term. Will the branding strategies adopted by Coca-Cola
enable it to achieve this objective? 

40 The Icfai Journal of Brand Management, Vol. V, No. 1, 2008

Bibliography
1. Bedi Rakesh (2007), “Coke Wants India Among Top 3 Markets”, Economic Times, May
28, 2007.
2. Bhushan Ratna (2003), “The Rural Conundrum”, Hindu Business Line – Thursday,
(Source: http://www.blonnet.com/catalyst/2003/08/28/stories/2003082800050300.htm),
August 28, 2003
3. Gupta Parul (2002), “Coke’s Second Wind”, Business Today, February 3, 2002.
4. Gupta Parul (2003), “Soft Drink Firms on a Rural Drive to Push Sales”, Business
Standard, June 5, 2003.
5. Kripalani Manjeet (2002), “Rural India, Have a Coke”, BusinessWeek, May 27, 2002.
6. Kripalani Manjeet and Mark L Clifford (2003), “Finally Coke Gets it Right in India”,
BusinessWeek, February 10, 2003.
7. Roy Chowdhury Paroma (2001), “The Unbottling of Coke”, Business Today, July 1,
2001.
8. Sanghvi Shwetal (2006), “COCA COLA: The Dilemma”, Indian Journal of Clinical
Practice, Vol. 17, No. 6.
9. www.news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5239758.stm

Case Study 41
 Exhibit 1
Slogans for Coca-Cola—1886-Present

1886 - Drink Coca-Cola

1904 - Delicious and Refreshing
1905 - Coca-Cola Revives and Sustains
1906 - The Great National Temperance Beverage
1917 - Three Million a Day
1922 - Thirst Knows No Season
1923 - Enjoy Thirst
1924 - Refresh Yourself
1925 - Six Million a Day
1926 - It Had to Be Good to Get Where It Is
1927 - Pure as Sunlight
1927 - Around the Corner from Everywhere
1929 - The Pause that Refreshes
1932 - Ice Cold Sunshine
1938 - The Best Friend Thirst Ever Had
1939 - Thirst Asks Nothing More
1939 - Whoever You Are, Whatever You Do, Wherever You May Be, When You Think of Refreshment
Think of Ice Cold Coca-Cola
1942 - The Only Thing Like Coca-Cola is Coca-Cola Itself
1948 - Where There’s Coke There’s Hospitality
1949 - Along the Highway to Anywhere
1952 - What You Want is a Coke
1956 - Coca-Cola... Makes Good Things Taste Better
1957 - Sign of Good Taste
1958 - The Cold, Crisp Taste of Coke
1959 - Be Really Refreshed
1963 - Things Go Better with Coke
1969 - It’s the Real Thing
1971 - I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke (part of the “It’s the Real Thing” campaign)
1975 - Look Up America
1976 - Coke Adds Life
1979 - Have a Coke and a Smile
1982 - Coke Is It!
1985 - We’ve Got a Taste for You (for both Coca-Cola & Coca-Cola classic)
1985 - America’s Real Choice (for both Coca-Cola & Coca-Cola classic)
1986 - Red, White & You (for Coca-Cola classic)

(Contd...)

42 The Icfai Journal of Brand Management, Vol. V, No. 1, 2008

 Exhibit 1 (...contd)

Slogans for Coca-Cola—1886-Present

1986 - Catch the Wave (for Coca-Cola)
1987 - When Coca-Cola is a Part of Your Life, You Can’t Beat the Feeling
1988 - You Can’t Beat the Feeling
1989 - Official Soft Drink of Summer
1990 - You Can’t Beat the Real Thing
1993 - Always Coca-Cola
2000 - Coca-Cola. Enjoy
2001 - Life Tastes Good
2003 - Coca-Cola... Real
2005 - Make It Real
2006 - The Coke Side of Life
Source: http://heritage.coca-cola.com/

Exhibit 2
TVC Storyboards
Coca-Cola Agency

Aamir Khan and Aishwarya ... with the password, “Coke Both Aishwarya and Aamir
Rai chat on the Internet using ho jaaye”. They decide to use arrive at the joint ...
code names. They decide to Coke bottles to identify one
meet at a popular hang-out ... another.

... only to find everyone there They go over to the Coke That’s when both recognize
holding a bottle of Coke. counter and simultaneously their anonymous chat friend.
order a Coke using the line, Super: “Jo chaho ho jaaye,
“Coke ho jaaye”. Coca-Cola Enjoy!”.

Source: TVAdlndx.com

Case Study 43
 Exhibit 3
TVC Storyboards
Coca-Cola Agency

Three girls explore possibility ... a farmer tending his fields. “Yeh gane de khet tamatar
of quenching their thirst. They Astonished, he blabbers in kitho?”.
approach ... Punjabi ...

“Woh, actually pyas lagi thi”, is “A ji, pyas di ki gal hai. Jado ... barsat kare de ... hukum karo
the answer. momiyan a gayi hain kheta ji”. The girl coyly asks for
wich, bin badal ... ‘thanda pani’.

“Thanda!” he shrieks ... and starts ... peene de bahane aaye, yara Wuenching her thirst, she
drawing water from the well. da tushan dekh lo”, sings the firstatiously compliments,
“Thanda peene de bahane aayi, rustic farmer. The bucket come “Tussi great ho”.
kudi, thanda ... up with bottles of Coke.

“O ji yaran da tushan”, he
replies accepting her flattery.

Source: TVAdlndx.com

44 The Icfai Journal of Brand Management, Vol. V, No. 1, 2008

 Exhibit 4
TVC Storyboards

Coca-Cola Agency

Two village belles ask for a
thanda at a road-side dhaba
even as a traveller is shown
washing his hands at a
tubwell ...
... pump. On hearing the dhaba
owner charging Rs. 6
for the chota Coke, he
promptly comes to the rescue
of the girls.
He confronts the shopkeeper,
who in turn, gets very miffed.
To drive for Rs. 5 only the
babu ...

... lets loose a flurry of ... related questions he blurts Correcting himself, he lifts one
questions, (fingers kitne hain, out five even when asked for finger. The babu nods and asks
pandav kitne the, etc.). Caught the number of fathers he has. him to return Re. 1.
in this barrage of five ...

The as he get ready to resume
his journey, the good
samaritan puts on his
sunglasses, gives a knowing
nod to the girls ...
... and sings out, “Arre thande
ka tadka lagai diya re,
harmonia bajaike”. In the
backdrop of the song, MVO:
“Paanch matlab chhota Coke”.

Source: TVAdlndx.com

Case Study 45
 Exhibit 5
Coca-Cola

Agency: McCann Erickson

Looking at girls on their way
to college, a bunch of college
guys tease them: “Aai-hai, umar
hai sola, kamar Coca-Cola”
and start whistling.
Turning back, one of the girls
tells the boy who had whistled:
“Jaaiye, yeh bhi koi seeti hai?
Jaise pressure cooker mein daal
chadi ho. Phus”.
As the guy starts getting
embarrassed, the girl explains
him, “Jab ladki se sunni ho
karari si gaali, toh aise bajate
hain mawali” and teaches him
the way to whistle.

Making the guy more
humiliated, the girl further
explains, “aur agar shauk ho
sandle chhapwane ka, toh kuch
is tarah bajane ka” and shows
him another way to whistle.
Turning her friends the girl
tells them, “aur doston, jisne
bhi yeh ghoonga seeti bajayi,
hawalat mein ghoosa-laat. Poori
raat”. As the guys find place ...
... to hide their faces, our girls
continues, “haan agar aapko
nahin banna hai rude, toh
thanda seeti bajaiyega, dude”
and whistles using a Coke
bottle.

Handling the guy the Coke ... guys totally embarrassed.

bottle, the girl tells him, The girl takes a sip of Coca-
“Faisla aapka, aakhir hawa hai Cola and concludes, “thande
aapki” leaving the ... ka tadka”.

Source:: agencyfaqs.com

46 The Icfai Journal of Brand Management, Vol. V, No. 1, 2008

 Exhibit 6
The Pesticide Controversy
The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) said their
investigations revealed that the drinks contain harmful residues, posing
a health risk.
CSE Director Sunita Narain told journalists in Delhi that samples
from 12 states showed that Pepsi products contained 30 times more
pesticides than found in 2003.
Likewise she said that Coke samples had 25 times the amount of
pesticides found three years ago.
She alleged that despite the public outcry over the issue following
the first report, the government has failed to set up the necessary quality-control standards for the soft drinks
industry

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5239758.stm Date of accession: June 18, 2007.

Exhibit 7
Coca-Cola
Agency: NA

The film opens on Aamir Khan
saying, “picchle dinon kai logon ne
mujhse poocha hai ki itne saare
vivaadon ke bawjood mujhe Coca-
Cola pe ...
... vishwaas kyon hai. Kyon main
abtak unke saath hoon. Kya mujhe
fikar nahin ki main aap se kya
peene ko keh raha hoon. Fikar hai,
bilkul hai ...”.
The star takes us inside a Coca-
Cola factory and tells us that the
soft drink and the ingredients
used in it undergo more than 400
quality tests.

Aamir even emphasises on the
quality of sugar used in Coca-
Cola as he says, “yahan tak ki
cheeni jo Coca-Cola mein use hoti
hai, uey vishesh ...
... hot carbon treatment se shudh
kiya jaata hai”. The actor says one
can see all this by visiting any
Coca-Cola factory anytime.
Source: TVAdlndx.com
Aamir concludes the ad by saying,
“Coca-Cola poori tarah surakshit
hai. Ek dum safe. Toh jab bhi man
kare befikar hoke peejiye aur enjoy
keejiye”.

Case Study 47
 Exhibit 8

TVC Storyboards

Coca-Cola Agency: McCann-Erickson (India) Ltd.

In a running train, the waiter After the train passes through He looks around for the
walks in with a bottle of Coke a dark tunnel, he sees that the culprit when he hears a burp.
on a tray. bottle is empty.

Soon, everybody on the train Suddenly, the waiter burps too Voiceover: “Dikhte hain hum
starts burping as the waiter as everyone starts smiling. alag-alag par andar se hain hum
looks on. same same ...

... Aaja aaja khud se baahar ... ... Sab ka thanda ek, Coca-
Cola”.

Source: TVAdlndx.com

Reference # 25J-2008-03-03-01

48 The Icfai Journal of Brand Management, Vol. V, No. 1, 2008