Vadodara: Who can forget Paul, the lovable psychic octopus, who left his indelible inky mark on football history during the 2010 FIFA World Cup and even correctly chose Spain as the ultimate winner.
When Paul had caught fancy of the world, the iconic witty Amul Girl had remarked – ‘Sabka Paul Khol Diya!’ As World Cup fever grips football fans in the country again, Amul is celebrating sport through its classical topical advertisements on FIFA, which were released at various points over the last three decades.
GCMMF has brought to life to the FIFA events in football crazy Kolkata, where 20 such classic topicals on hoardings are dotting the roads in the footballing hub of India.
“Football is the main sport of West Bengal, where people relate to the playing teams, have favourites and follow the game’s history. We are showcasing our classic topicals to make the Amul brand contemporary,” said R S Sodhi, managing director of GCMMF.
Amul has decided to roll out similar topicals in Kerala, Goa and Guwahati – three other football hubs of the country.
The humorous lines of the Amul Girl, who picks on nobody and spares nobody, have dealt with almost all the historic moments at FIFA World Cups. When Spain’s reign ended in the 2014, the topical cried ‘Tiki-Taka Nahin Tikka?’ showing the Amul Girl consoling the losing team with the line, ‘Amul: Pass it Quickly’.
It also commented on Brazil’s humiliating 1-7 defeat to Germany in 2014, with a tagline ‘Arre O Samba, Kitne Goal Thhe’
During the 2002 World Cup, it celebrated the Brazilian team’s star players, Ronaldo and Rivaldo, who were shown teaming up with the Amul Girl as ‘Amul Do’ by their side.