etergent marketers in India have been using a combination of stains in their advertising to make their point. From muddy water at a roadside ditch to achaar on a snowy shirtfront, they have pulled every possible instance of stain and smear from under the rug and dramatically put it in front of the camera.

However, all this daag-based advertising has imparted a remarkable sameness to detergent advertising. A while ago, there was a clutch of detergent ads with clothes hanging on the clothesline and the camera zooming in on a sweat stain on the armpit or a grimy collar. Today, the category advertising is essentially about cute kids wallowing in a mud pit; cute kids wiping watercolour-stained hands on their clothes; and cute kids with sloppy eating habits. Put most detergent commercials through the ads-minus-the-logo test and their near uniformity is stunning. ... more