Katrina Kaif birthday: Bollywood’s Barbie is a brand favourite too

Often hailed as one of the most beautiful and attractive actresses of contemporary Hindi cinema, Katrina Kaif, who turns 41 today, has carved a special niche for herself. Over a career spanning two decades, she has awed people with her screen presence, with her dance numbers being especially appreciated. Lately, she has impressed everyone in her role as an entrepreneur as well as she successfully leads her make-up brand Kay beauty to become a brand known for promoting inclusivity. 

Having topped a number of lists of the most popular or well-known celebrities from India several times over, Katrina has endorsed a variety of brands as well. According to Kroll Celebrity Brand Valuation Report 2023, her current brand value stands at US $ 27.1 million. In fact, the report also mentions her company as one of the most valued celebrity brands of the country. 

In 2009, she became the first Indian actress after whom Mattel designed a Barbie doll, on the occasion of the brand’s 50th anniversary, which earned her the sobriquet Bollywood’s Barbie. 

Her endorsement portfolio is an enviable mix of Indian and international brands like Slice, Lux, Titan Raga, Kalyan Jewellers, Lino Perros, Rado, Etihad Airways and Uniqlo among many others. On the occasion of her birthday, let’s have a look at some of the most memorable advertisements that Katrina has been a part of. 

LUX 

Appearing in a Lux ad is a testament to the popularity and appeal of any Indian actresses. Katrina, too, has appeared in some of the ads for soap brand which are known to showcase the beauty of its endorsers like none other. Here’s a classic one featuring Katrina.

 SLICE

One of the most iconic campaigns that Katrina has been a part of is the mango drink brand Slice. Her seductively biting into mangoes and wiping the droplets off her lips is an image that has stayed with people despite the advertisement being a decade old. 

They also released an updated, more version of the ad that aligned with her contemporary image and her marital status in 2022.

UNIQLO
Earlier this year, Katrina was announced as the brand ambassador for global apparel brand Uniqlo. On releasing the campaign for their spring/summer 2024 ad film featuring the actress, the brand’s marketing manager had said that their newest brand ambassador was full of ‘timeless charm and elegance’ as the reason to choose her as their first Indian brand ambassador. 

 RADO

The Swiss watch brand made Katrina their global ambassador last October last year, a nod to the global recognition of the actress. She is among the five global ambassadors of the luxury watchmaker currently, alongside her Bang Bang co-star Hritik Roshan. 

 TITAN RAGA 

Much before Rado, there was Raga - Titan’s watch range in which Katrina spoke about the right time to marry. This was ironically a time where her personal life and choices were also being questioned a lot. The ad not only spoke to many Indians of marriageable age but also served as her answer to all the questions flying around about her relationship status. 

 ETIHAD AIRWAYS

One of Katrina’s first stints as a global brand ambassador was for the UAE-based airline Etihad Airways with which she has been associated since 2010. 

ZOMATO

Another very memorable ad featuring the actress was the Zomato campaign which pitched the food delivery service’s delivery partners as the real stars. 

FEVICOL

Now that we have seen Katrina at her elegant best in some international brands, let’s take you back to 2007. One of the very first ads that featured Katrina was a funny Fevicol ad. 

KATRINA - THE CELEBPRENEUR
Launched in 2019, Kay Beauty has now come of age as a brand. It has been hailed for its innovation and promotion of inclusivity through its product range. The company today has an annual sales turnover of over Rs 100 crores. 

Since her first tryst with showbiz in 2003, Katrina has sure come a long way along. While she had a lot to prove when she began her career, she has now reached a point where she has a calm and soothing screen presence which is perhaps reflective of the calm in her personal life.