Aamir Khan turns 58: A look into Mr Perfectionist's brand journey
A stickler for quality in everything he does, Khan has always been a darling of brands
From Yaadon Ki Baarat to blockbuster movies like Lagaan, 3 idiots, and PK, Aamir Khan has always held sway in Bollywood. Monickered Mr Perfectionist for being a real stickler for quality, Khan celebrates his 58th birthday today.
Just like his brand of cinema, which is unparalleled in the industry, his personal brand is also unique, to say the least. Khan embodies values of perfection, consistency and genius -- qualities that brands would give an arm and a leg for to associate with. Not surprisingly, reports say that he charges five to seven crores for each endorsement deal. His net worth was last reported to be $225 million in 2021 and his brand value was estimated to be $24.9 million in 2020.
Endorsement journey
Khan associated with soft drink brands like Coca-Cola and Pepsi from the 2000s and many such ads from the era are still etched into the minds of the viewers. The most iconic is the Pepsi ad from the 90s where he starred alongside Aishwarya Rai and Mahima Chaudhury. Who could forget the variety of amusing characters he played in the Coke ads with the tagline "Thanda matlab Coca-Cola"?
Samsung Electronics and VIVO India
Khan also appeared in a Samsung mobile some years back. Later on, he remained the face of the brand for several years. Also, almost four years back, Khan endorsed VIVO India.
Godrej Group
About nine years ago, Khan also endorsed the Godrej Group. In the series of advertisements, he was featured to describe the Godrej products most interestingly. In 2013, Godrej roped in Aamir as the face of the brand when Godrej launched an integrated campaign of “ideas that make life brighter.”
Tata Sky
Khan has also endorsed Tata Sky as their brand ambassador in 2008, Vikram Kaushik, who was the CEO & Managing Director, of Tata Sky 2008 said, “Aamir makes a perfect fit with the Tata Sky brand values of trust, high-quality entertainment and innovation.” The statement defines how Aamir’s most creative and entertaining style of promoting brands stood out him in the clutter of other brand promoters.
Apart from promoting electronics and soft drinks brands, Khan also endorsed PharmEasy, Datsun, Phone Pe, Starplus, Walkaroo, Toyota Innova, Monaco Biscuits, Titan Watches, AU small finance bank and many other brands. However, he ran into controversy with the recent AU Small finance bank ad.
Through his career spanning over 30 years, Khan has made himself one of the most recognised actors in Indian Cinema. Besides achieving wealth and fame, Khan is the recipient of numerous awards, including nine Filmfare awards, four national film awards, and an AACTA award. Also, Khan was awarded Padma Shri in 2003 and the Padma Bhushan in 2010 and received an honorary title from the Government of China in 2017. Besides being honored with awards and titles, Khan has been described as “the biggest movie star” in the world. He is also listed in “The 500 most influential Muslims of the World.” Khan’s work as a social reformist made him listed on the ‘Time 100’ list of most influential people in the world in 2013.
Unlike other celebrities, Khan’s attitude towards life and work is quite different. Besides being nominated for many awards, Khan’s rejected to receive the awards. In many of the interviews, he mentioned that he doesn’t trust the award ceremonies except the National Film awards. Nonetheless, magazines and media kept following him. In September 2012, Khan was featured on the cover of Times’s Asia edition with the title “Khan’s Quest” "He is breaking the Bollywood mold by tackling India's social evils. Can an actor change a nation?”
Talking more in context to Humanitarian causes, Khan actively participated in the movements like ‘Narmada Bachao Andolan’ and ‘Janlokpal Bill Movement.’ Moreover, In November 2011, Khan was awarded as the National Brand ambassador of UNICEF to promote child nutrition. Despite all the political turmoil in India-China, Khan was chosen as India’s Brand Ambassador to china. In 2016, Khan was associated with the Maharashtra government to make the state drought-free in the next five years. Besides being a philanthropist, social reformer, actor, and Scriptwriter, Khan remains an unbiased feminist.
