MAM
FMCG advertisers hogged TV eyeballs in Jan ’17
BENGALURU: Thirteen advertisers shared places in list of top ten television advertisers in terms of number of insertions (or spots) across the first 4 weeks of 2017. The total number of insertions in the first four weeks of 2017 by the top ten television advertisers was 12,51,529.As is the norm, FMCG Brands grabbed the bulk of the spots – 93.56 percent or 11,70,874 insertions during weeks 1, 2, 3, and 4 (Saturday, 31 December 2016 to Friday, 27th January 2017) as per Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) data for top 10 advertisers Across Genre: All India (U+R): 4+ Individuals.
Of these 13, 11 were FMCG advertisers, with Amazon Online India Pvt Ltd (online) and Super Cassettes Industries (Music) being the sole exceptions. Both these non-FMCG advertisers were among the top ten television advertisers in two of the four weeks. Amazon ranked eighth in week 2 and fifth in week 3, while Super Cassettes ranked ninth and eighth in weeks 2 and 4 respectively in terms of number of television insertions per week.
Eight of the 13 advertisers were present in the top 10 list of advertisers in terms of television insertions in all the four weeks. Three were present in in the list during two of the four weeks and two were present in the list in only one week (week 1 of 2017).
Please refer to Fig A below:
The total number of television insertions by the top 10 advertisers per week increased from 2,68,323 in week 1 to 3,47,695 in week 3 before petering off by 9.81 percent to 3,13,579 in week 4. As is obvious, Hindustan Lever Limited (Lever) has been the top advertiser in the four weeks with 31.28 percent of total insertions by the top ten advertisers in terms of insertions.
Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved Limited which had stood third in the first three weeks of 2017 behind Reckiyy Benckiser (India) Limited climbed to the second spot in week 4 of 2017, pushing Reckit down to third spot. While Reckitt had cut down its ad insertions in week 4 by a massive 41.96 percent to 35,481 from 61,127 in week 3, Patanjali had increased its insertions by 20.5 percent in week 4 to 38,886 from 32,270 in week 3. Super Cassettes was the sole non-FMCG brand in the list of top 10 television advertisers in terms of ad insertions in week 4.
Fig B below gives the breakup of the top 10 advertisers in terms of number of insertions for individual weeks:
Brands
Champions again: How India’s brands roared after the T20 World Cup win
From food delivery apps to dating platforms, Indian brands wasted no time riding the wave of India’s historic back-to-back T20 World Cup victory over New Zealand
Ahmedabad: On March 8, 2026, which also happened to be International Women’s Day, India scripted history by clinching the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup for the second consecutive time, defeating New Zealand in a thrilling final. As fireworks lit up stadiums and streets across the country, another kind of celebration erupted simultaneously: India’s marketing machine kicked into overdrive.
Within minutes of the final whistle, brands from every sector, tech giants, quick commerce players, streaming platforms, and even a condom brand, were racing to craft the cleverest, most culturally resonant posts. Here’s a breakdown of how India Inc. celebrated the nation’s historic win.
Zomato: The Repeat Order
Zomato, India’s ubiquitous food delivery app, kept things refreshingly simple. Playing on its own product language, the brand posted: “Repeat order delivered 🏆 #INDvsNZ.” It was short, punchy, and perfectly on-brand, a nod to India’s back-to-back title, framed through the lens of what Zomato does best: delivering again and again.
Netflix India: Now Watching History
Netflix India leaned into its streaming identity with a clever checklist format: “2007 ✅ / 2024 ✅ / 2026 ✅ / NOW WATCHING: HISTORY BEING MADE 🇮🇳💪.” By bookending India’s three T20 World Cup victories as a watchlist completed in real-time, Netflix framed the nation’s triumph as unmissable content, the kind of story only live cricket can tell.
Reliance Jio: Typing the Win
Telecom giant Reliance Jio delivered a wordplay masterclass: “India typed ‘WIN’ in Black Caps today. 🏆” The double entendre, referencing both the act of typing in capital letters and the Black Caps (New Zealand’s cricket team), was crisp, witty, and instantly shareable. It was a reminder that in the age of social media, the best brand moments often come in a single sentence.
Google India: Teen Bhai
Google India took a more data-forward approach, posting “Teen bhai… 🔥” alongside a screenshot of Google Search’s AI Mode highlighting India’s three half-centurions in the final, Abhishek Sharma (52 off 21 balls), Sanju Samson (89 off 46 balls), and Ishan Kishan (54 off 25 balls). It was a subtle showcase of its AI search capabilities wrapped in patriotic pride. “Teen bhai” (meaning “three brothers”) referenced the trio of batting heroes who powered India to a massive total of 255/5.
Zepto: The Women’s Day Double Whammy
Quick commerce platform Zepto scored the most culturally savvy moment of the day by merging two celebrations into one. Earlier on Women’s Day, Zepto had posted: “Women’s Day gift idea: World Cup trophy 🏆 #WomensDay2026.” After India’s win, they quote-retweeted their own post with the simple reply: “Gift delivered 🇮🇳💜.” It was meta, timely, and perfectly executed, riding both national pride and the Women’s Day conversation in a single stroke.
CashKaro: They Tasted So Good, India Ate Them Twice
Cashback platform CashKaro went for bold visual storytelling with a striking creative: a tiger sitting over the T20 World Cup trophy with a plate of kiwi fruit, accompanied by the tagline, “They tasted so good, India ate them twice.” The use of the tiger as India’s symbol, paired with a cheeky jab at New Zealand’s kiwi identity, made this one of the most talked-about creatives of the day.
Manforce: Round 2 Always Gives the Best Satisfaction
In perhaps the most audacious play of the lot, condom brand Manforce posted a creative featuring the T20 World Cup trophy against a stadium backdrop with the copy: “Guess Round 2 always gives THE BEST SATISFACTION.” The innuendo-laden post, hashtagged #BackToBackChampions, was quintessential Manforce, a brand well-known for consistently using cricket moments to drive cheeky, double-meaning campaigns that generate massive engagement.
Parle-G: Pehle Dip Se Aakhri Cup Tak
Beloved biscuit brand Parle-G went the emotional, illustrative route with a vibrant artwork showing Indian cricketers lifting the World Cup trophy superimposed onto a giant Parle-G biscuit. The tagline, “Pehle dip se aakhri cup tak / Parle-G humesha saath rahega” (From the first dip to the last cup, Parle-G will always be with you), was a masterstroke of nostalgia marketing, connecting the simple act of dunking a biscuit in tea to an entire nation’s cricket journey.
Domino’s India: No Kiwi on This Pizza
Domino’s India served up a deliciously savage quip: “India mein pineapple on pizza chala nahi, Kiwi toh kya hi chalta 😜🏆 #Champions #India.” By invoking the age-old pineapple-on-pizza debate, Domino’s made a clever statement: if Indians won’t accept pineapple on pizza, there’s certainly no room for the Kiwis (New Zealand) either. It was the kind of post that got fans and foodies alike sharing in equal measure.
JioHotstar: History Repeated, History Defeated
As the official streaming home of the ICC T20 World Cup, JioHotstar had the most at stake and arguably the biggest platform. The brand’s post was thunderous in its simplicity: “HISTORY REPEATED, HISTORY DEFEATED!” A bold, all-caps declaration that served as both a celebration of India’s second consecutive title and a subtle flex for the broadcaster that streamed every ball of it.
Tinder India: It’s a Match Again
Dating app Tinder India proved that no brand is too far removed from cricket fever with a perfectly on-brand line: “India just matched with the world cup again 💙🇮🇳.” By using its own core product concept, a “match”, to describe India’s World Cup triumph, Tinder struck a note that was both clever and effortlessly native to the platform’s voice.
Snabbit: Sabko Dho Diya
Home services startup Snabbit rounded out the celebrations with a pun-driven visual: an Indian jersey hanging out to dry, with the copy “Sabko dho diya, ab champions hawa khayenge,” roughly translating to “Washed everyone clean, now the champions ride the breeze.” The laundry-meets-cricket metaphor (“dho diya” means both “to wash” and “to thrash completely”) was a crowd-pleaser that perfectly captured the irreverent, punchy spirit of Indian moment marketing.
The bigger picture
What these posts collectively demonstrate is the extraordinary maturity of Indian digital marketing. Brands no longer simply congratulate, they connect their core product identity to the cultural moment in ways that feel earned rather than opportunistic. In the space of under an hour, the same victory inspired a food app to talk about repeat orders, a dating app to talk about matches, a laundry startup to talk about washing opponents, and a telecom giant to make a pun about capital letters.
The convergence of India’s World Cup win with International Women’s Day added yet another dimension, as Zepto demonstrated brilliantly, showing that the best brands are always watching for the intersection of multiple cultural conversations.
India’s cricketers gave the country a night to remember. And India’s marketers, it seems, were ready and waiting.
