Does India's pharma industry need a creative facelift?

Walk into any Indian household during prime time television, and you will witness the parade of white-coated endorsers. A distinguished doctor in a white coat will look earnestly into the camera, speaking with authority about the latest breakthrough medication. The setting is clinical, the tone serious, and the message predictable. But here's the uncomfortable question: How many of these medical professionals are actually practising doctors? According to the Medical Council of India, doctors are generally prohibited from endorsing or advertising any drug, medicine, or commercial product due to ethical guidelines and regulations. 

However, advertisements in the pharmaceutical category often use this template with terms like ‘Doctor recommended’ and have dominated Indian pharmaceutical advertising for decades, creating a monotonous landscape where trust is manufactured through repetition rather than genuine connection.

This formulaic approach isn't unique to India, but it has become particularly entrenched in this market. From the early days of pharma advertising in the 1990s, when regulations were minimal and claims were bold, to today's compliance-heavy environment, the industry has settled into safe, sanitised communication patterns. The irony? In an attempt to build credibility, many campaigns have become indistinguishable from one another.

The Indian pharmaceutical sector allocated 43% of its total digital advertising budget to paid search in 2024, according to reports. The industry has also experienced a 6% growth in Q1 2024, with chronic therapies driving the growth.

Globally, the numbers are even more staggering. In 2025, the industry is expected to continue its significant investment with a 10.5% increase in digital ad budgets. 

Playing it safe while breaking rules

The evolution of pharma advertising in India is like a cautionary tale of unchecked creativity run amok. Before the landmark Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act of 1954, the advertising landscape made dubious claims and exploitative promises. Newspaper ads would boldly promise permanent cures for incurable diseases like cancer, diabetes, and blindness, often leveraging superstitious beliefs with images of sacred amulets claiming to ward off all diseases. 

This rampant exploitation of public vulnerability prompted the government's regulatory intervention. The DMR Act of 1954 fundamentally changed pharmaceutical storytelling by prohibiting advertisements for 54 specified diseases and disorders, banning misleading claims, and eliminating references to "magic remedies." Where once advertisers could promise instant cancer cures or mystical healing powers, they now had to focus on truthful, substantiated benefits for permitted conditions.

The communication shifted: instead of miraculous cure narratives, compliant storytelling shifted to simple problem-solution formats. This regulatory framework, strengthened by recent Supreme Court directions against violators like Patanjali Ayurved, has evolved from preventing outright deception to ensuring ethical, science-based communication that respects both consumer welfare and medical integrity.

Today, pharma advertising in India is governed by multiple authorities, including the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI), the Ministry of AYUSH for traditional medicines, and the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). 

Atin Roy and Cherojit Goswami, Senior Vice Presidents - Ogilvy Health & Wellness, acknowledge, "Stringent regulatory frameworks, modest patient engagement budgets, an overwhelming focus on physician outreach and inherent brand conservatism have often prevented the Indian pharma brands from exploring creativity as a powerful business growth catalyst."

Praful Akali, Founder & Managing Director, Medulla Communications, offers a different perspective, suggesting that creativity in day-to-day pharma advertising in India is actually growing, with clients becoming braver and agencies responding accordingly. However, he notes that specialist healthcare agencies have stepped back from awards participation post-COVID, focusing instead on commercial work.

Here's where the story takes an ironic turn. Despite the industry's cautious approach to creativity, healthcare remains one of the most lucrative sectors in advertising. The healthcare sector has emerged as the top violator in the realm of digital media advertising, as the sector accounts for 19% of all ads processed, making it the most violative sector, according to ASCI's 2024 report.

More than 8,000 ads aired between April 2023 and March 2024 came under scrutiny, 98% of which required modification. While pharma companies claim regulatory constraints limit their creativity, they continue to produce misleading content that violates existing guidelines.

The violations aren't limited to traditional pharmaceutical companies. AYUSH ministry data shows that traditional medicine and wellness brands consistently make exaggerated claims about their products' efficacy. 

Pharma brands tend to also use a casual tone to promote their products. Recently, I came across Digene promoting its ‘on-the-go’ products for hyperacidity, while Saridon and similar brands use casual, almost flippant tones to address serious health issues like headaches. These campaigns promise quick fixes, claiming "relief in minutes" for conditions that may require medical attention.

This approach raises questions about regulatory compliance and ethical responsibility. Are brands trivialising genuine health concerns in their pursuit of relatability? The casual tone, while potentially more engaging than traditional pharma speak, risks undermining the gravity of health issues and potentially delaying proper medical care.

Nisha Singhania, CEO & Managing Partner of Infectious Advertising, hits the nail on the head. "The problem is less about regulation and more about reluctance to engage with patients as people and not just as prescriptions."

For example, brands like Patanjali have frequently found themselves in regulatory hot water for making unsubstantiated health claims about their wellness products.

When India gets it right

Despite the challenges, India has produced healthcare campaigns that prove creativity and compliance can coexist. The most celebrated example remains the 2016 Cannes Gold Lion-winning "Last Words" campaign for the Indian Association of Palliative Care. This emotional campaign addressed the taboo subject of death and palliative care, creating genuine emotional resonance while maintaining ethical standards.

Roy and Goswami explain, "Indians are an emotional lot, hence the deeply moving theme of 'Last Words' resonated with a lot of people." The campaign didn't rely on medical jargon or celebrity endorsements; instead, it tapped into universal human emotions and cultural understanding.

More recently, DawAI Reader fetched Lowe Lintas India's first Pharma Silver Lion at Cannes 2025. This campaign addressed a very real pain point: pharmacists struggling to decipher doctors' handwriting on prescriptions. By using AI technology to solve a practical problem, the campaign highlighted how innovation can serve both business and social good.

Other examples include the Immunity Charm concept and the Iodine Bindi initiative, which married traditional practices with modern health needs. These campaigns succeeded because they understood their audience as people, not just patients.

Perhaps India's most impactful health campaigns have often come from the public health sector. The polio eradication campaign, with its simple ‘Do Boond Zindagi Ke’ message, became a phenomenon. Since there was reluctance in rural mothers to walk up to the vaccination camps set up by the government, Amitabh Bachchan, the ambassador for the polio vaccine program, was suggested to speak sternly. This prompted mothers to show up at Pulse Polio camps in all of rural India. On March 27, 2014, India was declared to be polio-free by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The campaign's success lay in its simplicity, cultural relevance, and consistent messaging across multiple touchpoints.

Similarly, campaigns addressing tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS awareness, and vaccination drives have shown how health communication can be both informative and emotionally engaging. These campaigns succeeded because they focused on behaviour change rather than product promotion, allowing for more creative freedom within regulatory boundaries.

Creativity within constraints

So, where does this leave India's pharma advertising? The experts suggest a fundamental shift in perspective. Roy and Goswami advocate for recognising that "physicians are fundamentally human," citing their success with a Dr. Reddy's antacid campaign that used engaging, relatable videos to connect with doctors on a personal level. 

Singhania emphasises the need for campaigns that inform and connect rather than just inform, pointing to successful examples like Cipla's "Inhalers Hain Sahi" campaign that tackled stigma with clarity and empathy, and Abbott's work on iron deficiency in women that used real insights to spark awareness.

The industry needs to embrace what Roy and Goswami call "empathy-led thinking" over "compliance-first" approaches. This doesn't mean ignoring regulations; it means finding creative ways to work within them while maintaining an authentic human connection.

India's presence at Cannes Lions 2025 was encouraging, with the 'DawAI Reader' campaign securing both shortlists and ultimately winning a Silver Lion. However, India's overall performance in international healthcare advertising awards remains modest compared to its potential.

Praful Akali believes that the pharma campaigns from India that won big pre-Covid, they all came from specialist healthcare agencies like Medulla Communications for Last Words, Last Laugh, and Slums for Worms and McCann Health for Immunity Charm. 

“However, post-COVID, these specialist agencies, including us at Medulla, have not been investing in awards. At least for us at Medulla, there is a larger volume of commercial work that is taking our focus.”

Akali continues that the recent pharma entries from India are from mainline agencies experimenting with pharma, and these will always find it tough to win big or win regularly.

“I don't think there is a decline in creativity for pharma advertising in India. It's just a matter of the specialist agencies getting back to the awards game,” he shares.

The country's rich cultural heritage, diverse medical traditions, and growing digital connections provide unique opportunities for healthcare communication. Roy and Goswami note that culture offers a unique opportunity for enhancing the creative output, particularly in public health campaigns that can leverage deeply rooted practices and beliefs.

India's pharmaceutical industry stands at a creative crossroads. The sector's growing economic importance, increasing digital investment, and evolving consumer expectations demand a more empathetic approach to communication. The challenge isn't choosing between creativity and compliance; it's finding the sweet spot where both can thrive.

The most successful campaigns have shared common elements: they treat patients as people, not prescriptions; they address real pain points with genuine solutions. 

Yes, India's pharma industry needs a creative reset, but the real question is whether the industry has the courage to embrace change, moving beyond the safety of templates to the uncertainty of genuine innovation.