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Since 1966 Amul has made thousands of quick, witty ads about the news of the day, keeping its butter brand fresh in the minds of people across India.

By Jignesh, , 4 min read

Brand
Amul
Industry
Dairy, food
Channel
Hoardings, print, social media
Year
1966 to today

Results

  • 1966

    the year the topical campaign began, still running today

    Source ↗

  • Thousands

    of topical ads made over the life of the campaign

    Source ↗

  • Rs 65,911 crore

    GCMMF turnover in 2024-25, up 11% (the business behind the brand, not a result of the ads alone)

    Source ↗

The challenge

Butter is an everyday product. It is hard to make people talk about it, and most butter ads look the same.

Amul, run by the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), needed a way to stay in people’s minds every week without spending like a big TV advertiser on every message.

What they did

In 1966 Sylvester daCunha and art director Eustace Fernandes created the Amul girl, a little girl in a polka-dot dress. Instead of talking only about butter, she comments on the news of the day with a pun and a cheeky line.

The ads react to cricket wins, films, politics and big events. They go up on hoardings and in newspapers, and today they also spread widely on social media.

Speed is part of the formula. One well-known ad came out only hours after the news it joked about. To keep that speed, Amul’s managing director said the company does not approve the ads before they run. It trusts its agency.

The style never changes: the same girl, the same look, the same light humour. Only the topic changes. The agency is now run by Rahul daCunha, and the campaign has produced thousands of ads.

What your business can take from this

  1. Talk about what people are already talking about

    Amul joins conversations people are already having. A local shop can do the same with a festival, a cricket match or the weather: one simple post that links the moment to your product, kept light and kind.

  2. Keep one look, change the topic

    The same character and style for decades means people know an Amul ad in a second. Fix your colours, fonts and tone, and use them on every post so customers recognise you before they read the name.

  3. Be fast, so set rules in advance

    Topical content only works when it is quick. Agree on what is off limits, such as tragedies or religion, and then let your team or agency post without waiting days for approval.

  4. Small and often beats big and rare

    Amul’s ads are simple, cheap to make and frequent. Regular small posts on Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp status will keep you in mind better than one expensive campaign a year.

Sources

  1. The National: How the Amul butter girl has been churning up debate for 50 years
  2. The Week (PTI): Amul brand FY25 revenue rises, GCMMF turnover up 11 pc
  3. Amul: Amul topical story

An independent study of a public campaign, written from published sources. Musafir Infotech did not work on this campaign.

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