Sylvester daCunha, creator of iconic Amul girl, no more

Sylvester daCunha, the man who created Amul’s Utterly Butterly girl, is no more. The advertising legend, who conceived the rosy-cheeked blue-haired moppet wearing a polka-dot frock as Amul’s mascot in the 1960s, passed away in Mumbai on Tuesday night.

daCunha, who was equally renowned for his theatrical talent penning several English plays, was in his 80s. Condolences and prayers poured in from leaders across sectors, particularly India’s dairy giant Amul.

Jayen Mehta, MD of Amul marketer Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd, termed the passing of daCunha a big loss to the ad industry. “He has been part of Amul’s advertising for six decades. Obviously, Amul owes a lot to him for its entire branding and giving the Amul girl to the world. It is the world’s longest advertising campaign with a single character,” he said.

daCunha created the topical campaign featuring the iconic ‘Amul girl’ initially for Amul butter, with the tagline ‘Utterly Butterly Delicious’. The little girl waltzed into the hearts of Indian consumers and the topical concept helped Amul strike a connect with consumers and the producers and farmers alike.

“The campaign would talk about anything and everything under the sky in a humorous way, involving anyone including celebrities, politicians, sportsperson and sometimes touching controversial topics, too. But the agency was trusted so blindly that the creatives were cleared without approval from the client,” Mehta said.

Ageless positioning

Former Amul MD and current head of Indian Dairy Association, RS Sodhi, said, “Farmers will remember daCunha for building India’s biggest brand for them.”

Shailendra Raj Mehta, President and Director, MICA, said, “We laughed with her (Amul girl) and also laughed till tears streamed out. She has had a witty take on all the social, political and cultural headlines of the day for five decades. Through her, Sylvester lives on.”

The Amul girl

daCunha created the Amul topical campaign featuring the iconic ‘Amul girl’ initially for Amul butter, with the tagline ‘Utterly Butterly Delicious’. The topical concept helped Amul strike a connect with consumers and the producers and farmers alike.

The ad designed by daCunha went public in 1966, when he was managing director of advertising agency ASP. He is survived by his wife Nisha, their son Rahul daCunha.