Protein mania grips India

“McDonald’s, Bollywood, cricket fuel wellness craze in India,” read the headline of an article by Reuters published in this newspaper on August 27. The article drew attention to how the country was witnessing a huge demand for protein-loaded products.

- AMBI PARAMESWARAN

Some years ago, the only place you saw “protein” emblazoned boldly on was on special drinks that gym-going men, and women, slugged after a heavy workout. It was seen as a special something that these six-pack aspirants consumed. Us mortals were not on the radar of such products. But as with all innovative products, the diffusion of innovation curve kicked in. The special ingredient managed to “cross the chasm” to become accepted by the early majority, it seems.

This was brought alive to me when I saw an ad by Godrej Yummiez for its chicken nuggets. The kid in the ad had drawn six-pack abs and wanted to eat protein. He was refusing to eat the noodles his loving father offered. The child’s argument was that he needed protein to become strong, and that only Godrej Yummies chicken nuggets had that. The ad was counterintuitive, making the kid demand something healthy, breaking out of the “healthy bhi, tasty bhi argument”. Also, it was nice to see the dad playing the role of a caregiver, instead of the stereotypical mom. To assuage taste fanatics and drive home the point that the kid actually loved the taste of the chicken nuggets, the ad’s punchline went: “Protein toh bas bahana hai (protein is just an excuse)...”