P V Sindhu to endorse Sri Sri Ayurveda

Baba branding takes backseat as Sri Sri ropes in celebrity endorsers

The primary factor driving the businesses led by spiritual gurus in India has been the gurus themselves. They are the face of the brand they promote. Be it Ramdev pushing products from Patanjali Ayurved or Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh marketing products of Dera Sacha Sauda, the babas have been savvy marketers.

But, there is one guru-led company that is moving away from the beaten track — Sri Sri Ayurveda, promoted by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s Art of Living Foundation. The company has brought on board badminton player P V Sindhu as a brand ambassador for its Ojasvita range, kicking off the association with a new malt flavour in the marketplace.

This is only the second endorsement in the baba-led space by a celebrity after wrestler Sushil Kumar featured in an ad last year for Patanjali Ghee. But, that was just one campaign intended to drive home the point of Patanjali Ghee’s effectiveness through Kumar.

Sindhu’s engagement with Ojasvita will be for two years and Sindhu is expected to do everything that a regular brand endorser does, says Tej Katpitia, chief marketing officer of Sri Sri Ayurveda. This will include not only appearing in advertisements for the brand, but also promoting the product on the ground during special events and occasions.

While Katpitia did not indicate the size of the deal, brand experts peg it at Rs 1.5-2 crore for two years. Sindhu’s asking price is estimated to be Rs 75 lakh-1 crore per endorsement per year, putting the Ojastivita endorsement in that bracket, experts said.

This may, however, not be the end of the road for Sri Sri as far as celebrity endorsements go. In fact, it may only be the start. “We are not ruling out the possibility of more endorsements in the future depending on our marketing and product plans. At this stage, however, this is the association that we have with Sindhu. Ojasvita is a line of health food drinks from us and we wanted a face that could convey this effectively. Sindhu is an upcoming sportsperson and the fit we felt was perfect. She will able to communicate how effective this product is to the masses,” says Katpitia.

CELEBRITY MAGIC

• Company: Sri Sri Ayurveda
• Endorser: P V Sindhu
• Brand: Ojasvita
• Deal size: Rs 1.5-2 cr