To be or not to be - That is the big question - Contentious Indian advertisements!

Advertisements are supposed to reflect the society and it is interesting to see that they are changing. first it was the Cadbury cricket ad of the nineties that was remade with a completely new gender bend. The hero turned heroine and the supportress turned the supporter. Cadbury cricket was a huge success and there was appreciation all around. 

But what Kwality Walls and Dabur did with their latest advertisement is quite contentious. The Kwality walls Advertisement shows a disapproving lady who is hostile to her new (may be gay/homosexual) neighbour couple. 

Her husband cajoles her to enter the neighbour’s house and viola Kwality Ice-cream melts the lady and her misconceptions about same sex couple living together. 

There is a definite deliberate awkwardness in the advertisement. It was a deliberate attempt to hint at something “THAT ÏS DIFFERENT”. So much so that even Asish Vidyarthi who plays the role of the disapproving lady’s husband remarked about the awkwardness in his social media post. The post is shared as a screen shot! 

The second advertisement that is stirring a storm in a tea cup is the Dabur ad. Dabur has shown two women (living together) fasting who see each other through a sieve! Dabur have shown Karva Chauth with a difference. Karva Chauth Is a festival of wives fasting and praying for the health of the husband and they see the moon through a sieve after a day’s hard fasting!  The advertisement has since been withdrawal by Dabur!

So far so good. As usual it is the Hindu customs/festivals that are taking a beating. Is it alright if Diwali and karva Chauth are used to display our liberal thinking? If the same was done with any other religion, would they be silent? Are the Hindus too silent and too accommodating? Just a thought process!

A sweet Lesson in Positioning – How Cadbury became India’s new “Meetha”

A Lesson in Brand Positioning. Why did Cadbury try to replace India’s traditional sweets and actually succeed?

For decades, chocolate in India was seen as a product meant for children. Yet today, Cadbury Dairy Milk is not just a chocolate — it is “meetha”, part of celebrations, rituals, and even new beginnings. How did a foreign chocolate brand enter a deeply rooted cultural space dominated by traditional sweets? The answer lies in one of the most remarkable brand positioning journeys in Indian marketing.

Cadbury India Ltd. is a part of Mondelēz International. Cadbury India operates in five categories:  chocolate confectionery, beverages, biscuits, gum, and candy. In the chocolate confectionery business, Cadbury has maintained its undisputed leadership over the years. Some of its key brands are Cadbury Dairy Milk, Bournvita, 5 Star, Perk, Bournville, Celebrations, Gems, Halls, Éclairs, Bubbaloo, Tang, and Oreo.

In India, Cadbury began its operations in 1948 by importing chocolates. After over 60 years of existence, it now has six company-owned manufacturing facilities at Thane, Induri (Pune), Malanpur (Gwalior), Bengaluru, Baddi (Himachal Pradesh), and Hyderabad, along with four sales offices in New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai. The corporate office is in Mumbai.

In the milk food drinks segment, its main product is Bournvita — the leading malted food drink (MFD) in the country. Similarly, in the medicated candy category, Halls is the leader. Cadbury also entered the biscuits category with the launch of the world’s No. 1 biscuit brand, Oreo.

Cadbury chocolates — the ultimate seductress in the form of chocolate — have been a favorite among Indians. The brand repositioning strategies that Cadbury has adopted over the years have been very interesting and are worth a detailed study.

CDM is for the kid in you: In the early days, Cadbury Dairy Milk (CDM) had a huge fan following among children. In order to build stronger appeal among older age groups, the brand repositioned itself through the ‘Real Taste of Life’ campaign in 1994. The campaign positioned Cadbury Dairy Milk as the chocolate that awakens the little child in every adult.

CDM is for all occasions: With the launch of the ₹5 pack in 1998, CDM became more affordable and accessible to the masses. The subsequent positioning — ‘Khaane waalon ko khaane ka bahana chahiye’ — transformed consumption into a joyful and social occasion.

CDM as a substitute for Indian sweets: In 2004, the ‘Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye’ campaign was launched, with the objective of increasing CDM consumption by making it synonymous with traditional Indian sweets (mithai).

CDM as a dessert: With the campaign ‘Khaane ke baad meethe mein kuch meetha ho jaaye’, Cadbury aimed to introduce the idea of having a Cadbury Dairy Milk as a post-dinner dessert.

CDM and cultural integration: In 2010, the ‘Shubh Aarambh’ campaign was launched, drawing from the traditional Indian custom of having something sweet before beginning something new. With this, Cadbury took the Dairy Milk journey a step further into the hearts of millions of consumers.

Cadbury Gems — the kid in you: The 2011 campaign ‘Raho Umarless’ celebrates the child within all of us. The advertisement depicts two friends unabashedly exchanging gifts that they receive when they buy a Cadbury Gems pack.

Cadbury Éclairs: Cadbury Éclairs has been present in India since 1971. The credit for creating éclairs goes to an English confectionery firm that devised this delicious formula in the 1960s. This indulgent combination of chocolate wrapped in soft, chewy caramel came to Cadbury when it acquired the firm. In 1994, the brand adopted the purple and gold packaging that has since become its trademark.

A New Repositioning Move — Choclairs: Cadbury has also introduced a new repositioning strategy by changing the name from Cadbury Éclairs to Cadbury Choclairs. The think tank at Cadbury seems to believe that its strongest associations lie with the words Cadbury and chocolate, and it wants to avoid any dilution of this identity. Hence, the reinforcement of the word Choclairs alongside Cadbury.

However, one small doubt arises. The category itself is known as an éclair. By moving away from the category name, is Cadbury opening a small window for competitors to step in and claim ownership of the “éclair” space?

Final Thought: Cadbury’s journey clearly shows that positioning is not static. It evolves with time, culture, and consumer behavior. From being a children’s chocolate to becoming India’s preferred “meetha,” Cadbury has successfully embedded itself into the cultural fabric of the country.

The question, however, remains, Is the move to Choclairs a reinforcement of strength, or the beginning of a subtle shift in category ownership?

Keywords: Cadbury positioning strategy, Cadbury Dairy Milk marketing strategy, brand repositioning examples India, Cadbury case study marketing, how Cadbury became meetha, chocolate marketing India, FMCG branding strategies, cultural branding examples,  marketing lessons from Cadbury, brand positioning case study India, Cadbury advertising campaigns India, consumer behaviour chocolate India

LinkedIn Hashtags #MarketingStrategy #BrandPositioning #Cadbury #CaseStudy #FMCG #ConsumerBehaviour #Branding #Advertising #MarketingInsights#DigitalMarketing #MarketingLessons #BusinessStrategy #BrandManagement #IndiaMarketing #StorytellingInMarketing