#baba ramdev

Those who are still in good, who still haven't faced this violent system, I would only ask you to contemplate your choices and start speaking out about those who are at receiving end of this state's incompetence and disregard. Pretty soon it'll be your turn too.

I mean, when Baba Ramdev alongwith India's health minister who is himself a doctor was advertising coronil as Covid cure - you didn't bat an eye. When central minister said his brand of papad saved people from corona - you didn't object. When Modi asked people to bang thalis or light diyas or when it said it'll throw flower petals on hospitals - you didn't bother to react and call out their bullshit. Most of you stayed apolitical. Tbh I don't think there is anything as apolitical. Apolitical are just people who have comfortable life under current political establishment. So you'll sometimes see many people who were political under Congress govt becoming apolitical under BJP. I mean, how many of us didn't support Anna Andolan?

As promised last week, today I am going to bring to you the story of Baba Ramdev’s brand ‘Patanjali’ which made its mark in a market full of leading brands like HUL, PnG, Reckitt Benckiser, etc  

In the past decade, spiritual gurus and ashrams have gained traction in the society not only through their teachings but also their products. ‘Patanjali’ is one such brand founded by Baba Ramdev which is giving head-on competition to all the other FMCG brands.

It all began in the year 2002, when Sanskar Television channel started airing Baba Ramdev’s yoga sessions making him a huge hit overnight. He was then signed up by Astha channel; within 2 years, he became a phenomenal figure garnering huge viewership ratings for the channel. Today, 15 years later, he is not only a spiritual guru performing Yogasans but also an entrepreneur with his own brand. He is the perfect example of how marketing can be driven by spirituality.

People mostly believe in being good while some move towards a particular spiritual path. As per past surveys, it has been observed that the buying behaviour of consumers are influenced by spirituality. Here the spiritual gurus sometimes rise up to the occasion and impact their consumption pattern.

As far as Patanjali Yogapeeth is concerned, Baba Ramdev has also influenced life of many with Social and Behavioural Sciences, Pranayam and Yoga, for welfare of people. Hence, within a very short span of time, this particular brand has become not only a national success but also have been acknowledged internationally. Baba Ramdev has accentuated on pranayam and yoga dimensions of spirituality to target the mass population worldwide. The edge that Patanjali has over the other competitors is ‘Spirituality’ and it is using this aspect to sell products in the market. Patanjali has diversified itself from aryurvedic products to FMCG products. Moreover, they are involved in a lot of other philanthropic work.

Hence, it can be rightly said that Ramdev has been successful in creating a positive image through spirituality, thus utilizing it in the marketplace.

I would like to leave you people with one question. Do you think that Babas and Swamis commercializing their image create a negative impact amongst the consumers? If so, where should they draw a line?