Gutsy Gattu was conceived by renowned cartoonist R.K. Laxman in 1954, when Asian Oil and Paint Company had a massive turnover of Rs. 3.5 lakhs. GATTU, the little Boy with wet Brush in hand happens to be the mascot / trade mark of Asian Paints in India.
The Gattu experiment was vastly different from what rivals at that time were doing. Jenson & Nicholson, for example, attempted to speak to an upwardly-mobile, urban audience in the seventies, with the ‘When you think of colour, think of us’ campaign. Gattu appealed to the masses and helped Asian Paints become the leader.
With Gattu’s track record, it was tough to axe it, but Asian Paints went ahead. It was trying to shake off its mass-market tag for a more premium appeal in the 21st century. This was the first of its two brand makeovers, where the emphasis shifted from the lovable icon to a corporate identity. The second makeover, three-four years ago, saw Asian Paints shortened to AP in the logo.
Asian Paints has also consolidated its earlier home solutions offerings under its paint solutions brand, Ezycolour, determinedly moving into the services space.
Picture Credit : Google