Sylvester daCunha, creator of iconic Amul Girl, no more

Vadodara/ Anand: Advertising industry legend Sylvester daCunha, who had created the iconic Amul Girl campaign, passed away on Tuesday night in Mumbai. His campaign with tagline ‘Utterly Butterly Delicious’ had been etched in the minds of people for decades. Tributes poured in from the dairy sector in Gujarat for the man who had created the cheerful blue-haired, round-eyed and chubby-cheeked girl for Amul. daCunha had created the campaign featuring the little moppet in a white dress with red polka dots initially for Amul butter. He had ideated the campaign in 1966 when late Dr Verghese Kurien, Father of India’s White Revolution, was looking to build an ad campaign for the brand that had started its journey a decade ago. The Amul topical concept, which now has the distinction of being the world’s largest advertising campaign with a single character, helped Amul strike a connect with consumers, producers and farmers alike. “It is a big loss to the Amul Girl. He had made a huge contribution not just to Amul but the entire advertising industry. He created a brand and a mascot which turned into a campaign that doesn’t require the client’s approval about a topic. He earned the client’s trust and respect,” said Jayen Mehta, managing director of the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) that markets brand Amul. “The campaign talks about anything and everything under the sky in a humorous way. It involves anyone — politicians, sportspersons, celebrities and at times touches controversial topics too. But the client trusted daCunha Communications so much over the past six decades that the creatives were cleared without approval from the client,’’ said Mehta, adding that his son Rahul daCunha now carries forward his father’s legacy for all brands of Amul. “The man who created the legendary, longest running campaign of the world and gave ageless positioning of ‘Utterly Butterly Delicious’ to Amul butter. Farmers will remember daCunha for building India’s biggest brand for them,” said R S Sodhi, former managing director of GCMMF and president of the Indian Dairy Association.