How mango became a cultural asset for Indian brands

Every July 22, Indian social media lights up in shades of yellow and green. Posts tagged with #NationalMangoDay range from childhood memories to recipes, beauty routines, and brand campaigns. And yet, unlike World Yoga Day or Independence Day, National Mango Day has no formal government backing. Its origin is unclear; possibly launched by the National Horticulture Board in the 1980s, possibly popularised by food lovers and marketers in more recent years.

That ambiguity, however, works in the mango’s favour. For Indian brands, Mango Day offers a rare opportunity: the chance to tap into a seasonal moment rooted in shared emotions but free from institutional baggage. The mango in India is more than a fruit. It is a gift of affection, a symbol of summer, a sensory memory, and, as brand strategists increasingly understand, an emotional shortcut.

This article explores how Indian brands, particularly in the beverage, confectionery, fashion, and beauty categories, are not only leveraging Mango Day as a marketing event but turning the fruit itself into a long-term brand asset. From billion-dollar FMCG portfolios to niche fashion launches, the mango has become a strategic narrative tool. Its cultural capital, built over 4,000 years, is now being reimagined for every screen, shelf, and season.

Mango as memory

In India’s packaged mango drink segment, Maaza, Frooti, and Slice account for the bulk of the market. While all three offer similar fruit-based beverages, their brand strategies differ in how they connect with consumers. Each positions itself around a particular aspect of mango's cultural or sensory appeal, whether linked to memory, playfulness, or indulgence, showing broader patterns in how Indian brands build emotional associations with familiar ingredients.

Maaza

Maaza, owned by Coca-Cola, positions itself around nostalgia and cultural generosity. Its campaigns often reference the tradition of mango gifting and shared summer experiences, drawing on themes of familiarity and togetherness.

The tagline 'Aam Wali Dildaari,' delivered by long-time brand ambassador Amitabh Bachchan, aligns the product with the idea of heartfelt giving. Through campaigns like 'Maaza Ho Jaye,' the brand also attempts to associate mango consumption with a wide range of Indian occasions, from casual family gatherings to everyday celebrations, positioning it as a year-round presence rather than just a seasonal drink.

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On Mango Day, this messaging is amplified across digital platforms through shareable content and memory-driven storytelling.

Frooti

Parle Agro’s Frooti positions itself around youthfulness and visual appeal. A major packaging revamp by the design firm Sagmeister & Walsh helped shift the brand’s identity towards a more modern and urban aesthetic. Its long-running slogan, 'Mango Frooti Fresh and Juicy' and 'Why Grow Up?', show a focus on playful nostalgia and everyday spontaneity. Over the years, its campaigns have featured celebrities such as Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan, and expanded into regional markets with endorsements by actors like Allu Arjun and Ram Charan.

 In 2022, the brand launched a nationwide campaign under the hashtag #FrootiYourWay, highlighting its adaptability across different consumer moods. Around Mango Day, Frooti typically activates influencer-led digital content and interactive formats aimed at maintaining relevance among younger, city-based audiences.

Slice

PepsiCo’s Slice approaches mango marketing through the lens of indulgence and visual opulence. The brand has consistently positioned mango as a symbol of glamour and desire, with a focus on stylised, high-production-value campaigns.

While Kiara Advani currently fronts its advertising, earlier campaigns prominently featured Katrina Kaif, whose association helped establish Slice’s aspirational tone. Unlike Maaza or Frooti, Slice’s marketing avoids themes of nostalgia or everyday familiarity, opting instead for narratives built around sensory richness and luxury. 

Pulse Candy 

A significant mango-related campaign in recent years came from the confectionery segment. DS Group’s Pulse Candy, launched in 2015, is based on the Kachcha Aam (raw mango) flavour and includes a powdered masala filling. According to company data, the product crossed ₹50 crore in sales within six months and reached ₹100 crore by January 2016. The launch aligned with market data at the time from Nielsen India, which showed that raw mango and mango flavours accounted for approximately 50% of the hard-boiled candy segment in India.

In 2023, for Mango Day, Pulse released an augmented reality game on Snapchat in which users collected falling virtual mangoes using facial gestures. The campaign recorded over 28 million impressions, with engagement durations above the platform’s average. The activity replicated the product’s structure in digital form, using the mango and spice concept as the basis for interaction.

Mango Bite 

Parle’s Mango Bite was launched in 1989 as a hard-boiled candy made with mango pulp, offering a sweet mango flavour. Over time, the brand introduced several extensions, including Juizy Mango, a juice-filled variant, and Bigger Mango Bite, a larger-format version.

In the early 2000s, Parle expanded the portfolio further with Kaccha Mango Bite, designed to replicate the tangy taste of raw mango.

A campaign associated with this variant featured a boy who goes to a shop and asks for the photocopy of a real raw mango. The ad was designed to emphasise the candy’s claim of capturing the exact taste of raw mango in a convenient format.

Unlike newer entrants such as DS Group’s Pulse, which introduced format changes and digital activations, Parle’s mango-flavoured candies have relied primarily on product familiarity, distribution, and limited but memorable advertising campaigns. 

Mango in fashion and beauty

The marketing value of mango in India has now moved beyond taste to include texture, colour, fragrance, and feeling. This is most evident in sectors like fashion, personal care, and accessories, where the fruit is never actually part of the product but still central to the story.

Miraggio, a luxury handbag label, created a special 'mango tone' edition for its 'Summer Scoop' collection. Here again, mango was not a motif but a palette, a way to signal energy, warmth, and brightness associated with the season.

In the beauty space, Hyphen launched a mango lip balm after an April Fool’s joke prompted actual customer demand. The product, originally teased as satire, was eventually rolled out due to persistent requests. Marketed as a 'nostalgia trigger' with SPF 50, it positioned mango not just as flavour, but as a flashback in a tube.

These examples suggest a growing sophistication in how brands use mango, not just to sell a product, but to sell a feeling. In this approach, the mango becomes a symbolic ingredient, a cultural code that doesn’t need to be literal to be effective.

India’s relationship with mango is not transactional; it is cultural, emotional, and generational. For Indian brands, this offers a built-in advantage that goes beyond flavour. Mango Day is just one moment in the calendar, but the mango as a symbol can drive year-round strategy, across sectors, touchpoints, and formats.