Amitabh Bachchan turns 80: A look at ads by the biggest brand name in India

Legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan, the 'angry young man' who defined the 1970s, turned 80 today

Legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan, the 'angry young man' who defined the 1970s, turns 80 on Tuesday. The superstar, whose latest movie features include Brahmastra, and Goodbye, continues to be the first choice of directors. 

Bachchan made his debut in Bollywood with 'Saat Hindustani' in 1969. However, he rose to fame with the release of his movie 'Zanjeer' in 1973. Since then, 'the angry young man' has continued to give superhit movies to the industry, with some of his notable works including, Sholay, Don, Deewaar, Chupke Chupke, and Abhimaan. 

With the passing of time, Bachchan transitioned into age-appropriate characters in films and gave movies such as Mohabbatein, Pink, Cheeni Kum, and Jhund.

Fifty years into the movie industry, the legendary actor entered the world of advertising nearly 26 years ago. From being Amazon Alexa’s voice to the Covid-19 caller tune, Bachchan, at 80, is still the one of biggest brand names in India and the favourite choice of advertisers. 

On his birthday, let's look at some of his most famous brand features to date:

BPL

The first endorsement by Bachchan was launched during the post-liberalisation era by BPL, an electronic brand. Conceptualised by Dhar & Hoon, the ad sought to promote the feeling of Indianness among Indians. 

In the ad film, Bachchan points out how Indians feel foreign names hold merit, but Indian ones don't. He challenges people with Indian names to show their strength.

Cadbury Dairy Milk 

One of the most notable ads features by Bachchan, he endorsed Cadbury Dairy Milk's in multiple ad series, from ‘Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye’ to 'Pappu Paas ho Gaya' series. 

Pepsi

Bachchan featured in a series of commercials for Pepsi, from 'Yeh Dil Maange More' to 'Oye Bubbly'. He also shared screenspace in some of the ads with Sachin Tendulkar and Arshad Warsi.

Gujarat Tourism

Big B was roped in by Gujarat Tourism for their ad campaign ‘Khushboo Gujarat ki’ to promote tourism in the western state. The campaign showcased Kutch, Bhuj to Sabarmati, to portray the essence of Gujarat.

The lines that caught viewers' attention were Bachchan saying ‘Yahan khushboo hai Gujarat ki’ followed by ‘Kuch din toh guzaaro Gujarat mein’.

Polio

In 2002, when Polio became a grave concern for health agencies, Big B was roped in as the goodwill ambassador for the Polio UNICEF campaign in 2005 to spread awareness about the vaccine and encourage parents to take their children to the polio booth.

The ad portrayed the struggles of a rural family to raise a child, and how all those efforts go in vain if polio drops are not given at the right age. The ad struck a chord with people with Bachchan's line 'do boond zindagi ki.' 

Maggi

Bachchan started to endorse the most-famous noodles in India, Maggie in 2012. The superstar pitched for happiness in the ad which one can get in 2 minutes by eating instant noodles. 

His other notable brand endorsement includes Boroplus, Tanishq, Parker pens and the India Poised initiative by Times of India, with the octogenarian actor's latest ad feature being for Maaza.