Gattu and the transformation ad: why a painted wall makes a good story

Paint is the only category where the product becomes the room. That makes the before and after the strongest picture it owns.

Written by the Colleviate Strategy desk

The artwork in this series is original and shows fictional brands. We have not redrawn any real campaign, mascot or slogan, and no national symbol appears. The painter on the page is our own character, not the mascot named here.

What the record says

Asian Paints is widely reported to have introduced the character Gattu in 1954, drawn by the cartoonist R. K. Laxman, and to have retired him in 2002. We have taken those dates from reference entries and haven't seen the company's own archive, so treat them as reported. The more interesting fact is the one the mascot illustrates: a paint brand was for decades a character with a face, not a colour card.

The category today

In our paints deep-dive, the incumbent holds 72.1 percent of branded search. Birla Opus is at 11.0, Nerolac at 7.6 and Berger at 7.3. A challenger at 11 percent is not trying to out-shout a leader at 72. It is trying to be remembered for one thing. Share of search measures attention, not sales.

The idea we would draw

“A new coat for an old wall.” A painter on a ladder rolls bands of colour onto a wall that has seen better years. A handwritten note on the card says the thing every household says, which is that the painting will be done after the festival. Paint's most honest competitor is not another brand. It is the decision to wait.

What a transformation ad asks of a brand

• Show the change, not the can.
• Give the audience a person to watch, so they have someone to root for.
• Address the delay. The real objection is rarely the price.

The topical, public voice that Amul used in the same era is in the hoarding that answered back. If you know someone at Birla Opus, tag them on the post. More concepts are on the Window shopping page.