Fair & Lovely ads through the ages

Fair & Lovely ads through the ages

Fair & Lovely was launched in in India in 1978

Fair-Lovely

NEW DELHI: Hindustan Unilever’s Fair & Lovely, one of the most popular fairness creams in India, has rebranded the name as ‘Glow & Lovely’ after facing criticism from people for perpetuating racial discrimination over the years. The brand was launched in India in 1978 and since then its promoting fairness tone through its product.

For a country like India which is obsessed with fair skin, HUL's advertising strategy for Fair & Lovely has always been about getting a fair tone. The brand in its advertising has shown how women who are dark finds problem in getting jobs or a suitable match for marriage.

In fact, in 2007, HUL had to withdraw an advertisement which showed a dark-skinned woman, who was looking for a job and a boyfriend, suddenly becoming the talk of the town after she started using Fair & Lovely.

Padmini Kolhapuri, Juhi Chawla, Yami Gautam and a number of Bollywood stars have been the brand ambassadors of Fair & Lovely which only triggered the popularity of the brand.

Also, the product in its advertisements have claimed it makes people several shades lighter in four to six weeks.

One of its most popular ads was when Genelia d’Souza was featured in an advertisement and showcased that she gets confidence with fairness by applying Fair & Lovely and gets selected for commentary alongside Srikant for a cricket match.

According to a report, HUL research says that 90 percent of Indian women want to use whiteners because it is aspirational, like losing weight. A fair skin is like education, regarded as a social and economic step up.

A glance through some of the popular ads by HUL for Fair & Lovely

Also, as soon as the company announced the new name, the meme fest began on Twitter.