Music and Branding Veteran Rajeev Raja’s 10 Favorite Ad Jingles
From Cadbury Dairy Milk to Liril, the artist recounts the commercial songs that India has sung along to over the decades
Flautist, composer and BrandMusiq founder Rajeev Raja.
Rajeev Raja has been a fixture in the jazz-fusion circuit in India for years now, often performing as the Rajeev Raja Combine. Outside of being a musician, Raja has had over 25 years of experience in advertising. He combined both interests with BrandMusiq, a company that creates sonic identities for brands. Among his new creations is the term MOGO® or musical logo. Below, he talks about his favorite ad jingles for Indian brands and products over the years and how they’ve taken on a life of their own as memorable music.
Throughout its history, Indian advertising has had a very harmonious relationship with music. At one time the ‘jingle’ was ubiquitous and some of them were as popular as Bollywood songs!
Of course, some jingles went on to achieve an iconic status and are important milestones in the evolution of Indian advertising.
Here are some of my picks from down memory lane, in no particular order:
“Hamara Bajaj“
A rousing, anthemic, emotional piece of music that made brand Bajaj synonymous with brand India
“Kal Bhi, Aaj Bhi, VIP”
Another composition that went straight to the heart of middle-class India underlining the brand’s heritage
“Dip, Dip, Dip” — Taj Tea Bags
‘Dip, dip dip
A little sugar
And it’s ready to sip’
A musical way to introduce a new category to the consumer. A vivid product demo in song!
“Kuch Khaas Hai” — Cadbury Dairy Milk
Perfectly expressing the deep bond between consumers and their favorite chocolate. Made immortal by the ‘dancing girl’ commercial and Shankar Mahadevan’s soulful rendition.
“Soundarya Sabun Nirma“
A blockbuster jingle that ran mainly on the big screens and was instrumental in the brand giving Unilver’s Surf a run for its money.
“La la la la la, Liril“
The image of Karen Lunel cavorting under a waterfall was every woman’s fantasy come true, made unforgettable by this catchy jingle.
“Pa pa ra pa pa ra rum, Nescafe“
Perfectly captured the exuberance of the morning and the joy of sipping a steaming cup of coffee
Mozart-made for India, Titan
A masterstroke to adapt Mozart’s Symphony No. 25 for an Indian brand. This tune has seen so many renditions down the ages, making the Titan brand truly timeless.
The Airtel tune
Composed by A.R. Rahman, this beautiful melody wafted into the hearts of millions of Indians making Airtel a larger-than-life Indian brand.
“Yeh Hi Hain Right Choice Baby” — Pepsi
With this peppy, upbeat jingle featuring Remo, Pepsi successfully Indianized its iconic ‘Choice of a New Generation’ global campaign.
There are many more great jingles that didn’t make this list as I had to keep my top 10.
Today, of course, the jingle has evolved into the science of Sonic Branding which is all about creating the unique ‘sound of a brand’.
