Thums Up’s best campaign is not an advertisement; it’s biryani.
Thumbs Up! has recently released a new ad for Ramadan, encoded for a 15-second duration. Featured in this ad, alongside a chilled bottle of Thums Up, are biryanis and niharis. The tagline of this ad is “Har Mehfil ki Jaan, Biryani aur Toofan!”
While this drink was placed on a very evident iftar menu, this ad is not simply a part of the Ramadan advertising spree. For a long time, this cold drink has tried to establish itself firmly alongside Indian celebrations and their accompanying cuisine.
The latest ad for Ramadan is, on one hand, a continuation of a series of Thums Up advertisements that seek to establish this drink as a standard accompaniment for Indian cuisine. At the same time, it is a nod to the “toofani” in this drink, that it is said to pair best with biryani.
About three years ago, this brand released two identical ads, one featuring Shah Rukh Khan and another featuring Vijay Deverakonda. One was in Hindi, and one was in Telugu, but both of these advertisements conveyed one message: “Biryanki ke saath soft drink nahin….toofan peete hain,” (one does not drink soft drink with biryani, one drinks a storm).
While Khan and Deverakonda established the link between the toofani drink and the biryani for the brand, the The Coca-Cola Company -owned drink took the link to the next level with its association with branded content a year later.
‘Thums Up Toofani Biryani Hunt’ was a show on Disney+ Hotstar in 2023, featuring celebrity chef Ranveer Brar.
It was a six-episode series where the celebrity chef went to legendary biryani places in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh with YouTuber ‘Anchor Ravi’ and recreated the classic dish, with Thums Up accompanying the meal every time.
Since Thums Up is an Indian drink launched in 1977, acquired by The Coca-Cola Company in 1993, its strong carbonated feel and thunderous flavor match perfectly with heavy meals like biryani.
The association marketing done by Thums Up over the past few years is attempting to drive the following message to the masses in India – if there is biryani in a meal, there needs to be thunder in the drink.