How Saridon retouched its iconic jingle to position itself in the minds of young adults

It takes a lot of courage and optimism for a legacy brand to retouch its iconic taglines and jingles, which is what Saridon has done.

Headache relief medicine brand Saridon recently launched a campaign with a fresh take on its iconic jingle ‘Sirf Ek Saridon’, which still features the legacy lyrics but also appeals to people to not hide their headaches. ‘Sir Dard Chupao Nahi, Mitao’, it says.

Ritu Mittal

Speaking to BestMediaInfo.com, Ritu Mittal, Head, Marketing and Digital, Bayer Consumer Health India, said they have brought back the iconic jingle ‘Sirf Ek Saridon’, leveraging the nostalgia that has resonated with millions of Indians for decades.

“Sir Dard Chupao Nahi, Mitao intended to make the brand reconnect with young adults, specifically, in times when incidences of headache have gone up. Young adults experience frequent headaches. A lot of them are stress-induced; they have more responsibilities with an increased screen time in the present work-from-home scenarios, which leads to a lot of frequent stress-induced headaches. We wanted to create a campaign they can relate to, and at the same time leverage the jingle.”

The film:

Saridon has also redone its packaging in an attempt to make it more contemporary and modern to reach the pulse of the audience.

Conceptualised by Lowe Lintas, the film talks about how people must stop hiding their headaches and act upon them. It positions medicine as the one-stop solution for erasing headaches.

The brand claims to provide pain relief as fast as 30 minutes after consumption, due to its unique triple-action formula. Their website also says Saridon is more efficacious than other paracetamol, ibuprofen and aspirin brands. The brand over decades has managed to fixate its name with headache in the country with many campaigns over the years expressing its functional benefit.

Its history across years

Saridon was launched in 1933 by Hoffmann La Roche, a Swiss multinational healthcare company popularly known as ‘Roche’. In 1969, Roche bought Saridon to India and manufactured it until 1993. The licence was later transferred to Nicholas Piramal, now known as Piramal Enterprises Limited. Piramal continues to distribute it for Bayer Consumer Health in India. The Saridon brand was transitioned back to Bayer's new consumer health business at the end of the licensing agreement term. 

Saridon first started advertising on television in the 1970s. The ‘Sirf Ek Saridon Aur Sardard Se Aaram’ jingle was coined in the 1990s, Piramal’s website states. Over several decades, the jingle has managed to sketch the function of medicine in the minds of the audiences.

Some of their campaigns across years

A few more movies on the same lines

Asked about which communication strategy has pushed Saridon, Mittal said, “I would say Saridon is synonymous with fast headache relief in India. This has not happened because of a single communication but because of multiple communications over the years, which have delivered consistently on this key functional benefit, which is, of course, backed by strong product performance.”

According to a research firm AIOCD AWACS, in 2018 the brand hogged 85% market share in the fixed-dose combination category. Many studies suggest Saridon is the No. 1 oral analgesic brand in the country, commanding close to 14% of the market.

However, the brand's journey has not always been a boat ride in the country. In 2018, the healthcare ministry banned more than 300 fixed drugs combinations, stating “there is no therapeutic justification” for the ingredients that are contained in the banned FDC drugs. However, in 2019, the ban was lifted by the Supreme Court of India after Piramal Healthcare challenged the government’s decision to ban Saridon.

How the brand addresses apprehensions about medicines

Speaking about how the brand has managed to work on apprehensions many people have about quick-relief medicines in the country, Mittal said, “Our mission is to empower the 1.4 billion Indians with better self-care solutions and self-care, which in India is in a very nascent stage; that holds true for pain as well. There are a lot of myths and of concerns and today, there isn't the best possible infrastructure in terms of solutions that is available to these consumers where they can ask questions, get the knowledge, find out about products and solutions. We will continue to work towards it so that we can ensure our consumers are provided with the most effective solutions, be it information, product or service.”

“Saridon is a trusted brand, and it has been aiding consumers with pain relief in India for the last 52 years. It's marketed globally in around 31 countries. The brand has undergone successful clinical trials to meet the required safety and efficacy parameters. At Bayer, we fully respect and will work in line with all regulations issued by the authorities. Keeping these in mind, we will always continue to serve our consumers with the highest levels of integrity and safety standards. Regulations are a part of any sector, including pharma, and we will continue to respect and work in line with the regulations,” Mittal said.

Tasneem Ali

According to Tasneem Ali, Executive Director, Lowe Lintas, the experience of working with Sariodon has been rewarding. “The experience has been special to say the least, like catching up with a friend from childhood who we had lost touch with for many, many years. The Saridon ads on TV were after all very much part of the soundtrack of an entire generation’s growing-up years. It’s been an enjoyable and exciting challenge for the team to come up with a fresh take on an iconic brand that has been synonymous with the category.”

She said one can never underestimate the importance of a fresh, focused brief and clients who are clear about what they seek. Thus far, the relationship has been very lively, mutually respectful and, of course, headache-free, she said.

“Thanks to some solid strategic thinking by the planners and clients, we had a sharp and inspiring brief based on a human insight that people would rather cover up headaches than ever complain about them. So, putting on a brave face and ploughing through work or family commitments becomes the norm. This is the entrenched consumer behaviour we are seeking to change, with the timely intervention of Saridon,” said Ali about the new campaign.

The future after the rebranding campaign

Bayer India, which recently launched a consumer health division in India, aims to go aggressive with Saridon and another leading brand, Supradyn. "Our ambition for the consumer health business in India is to reach 75 million new households by leveraging our existing brands by 2026, said Mittal. She said they will leverage the portfolio of leading and trusted brands that they have globally. In order to touch these billions of lives in India to provide them with safe, convenient and effective daily health solutions so that they can treat their minor illnesses and improve their lives."

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