Beverage giants Coca-Cola and PepsiCo are known for memorable brand campaigns and major celebrity collaborations. Who can forget Coca-Cola’s ‘Thanda Matlab Coca-Cola’ ad featuring Aamir Khan or Pepsi’s ‘Yeh Dil Mangey More’ campaign in collaboration with Shah Rukh Khan and Sachin Tendulkar! But can anyone recall such massive celebrity collaborations by RoohAfza? Hardly.
That’s a rarity in an industry where 27% of all television ad volumes is celebrity-led (TAM AdEx Celebrity Endorsement Report, 2025). The rose-flavoured drink has remained a summer staple in many households for over a century. Launched in 1907, the drink has stuck around as a medicinal concentrate to combat heatstroke, dehydration and the scorching heat of north India. And despite the onslaught of droves of cola and non-cola beverages it has managed to stay relevant. Its only celebrity ambassador Juhi Chawla was signed in 2008.
According to estimates, the brand maintains a leading position in the syrup and concentrate market, holding a 42% share in the ₹850 crore segment. “There are some brands which are pantry favourities and RoohAfza is one of them,” says Naresh Chopra, co-founder & managing partner, Bang In The Middle.
Consistency has been the cornerstone of the brand’s strategy. The rose flavour and the red glass bottle have remained changed. “RoohAfza’s longevity rests on four enduring pillars: consistency, tradition, trust and relevance. The brand has protected its most distinctive asset — its unmistakable taste, while evolving how it participates in people’s lives,” says Rajesh Patalia, chief strategy officer, Agency09. “RoohAfza has demonstrated that purposeful evolution does not require diluting a brand’s core identity; it requires understanding which elements must remain timeless and where the brand can adapt to stay culturally meaningful,” he adds.
Though the drink started as a remedy to survive the heat, consumers started to experiment with it. One would often find RoohAfza being fused with cold milk, ice-cream or even a kulfi. Consumer experimentation goaded the brand to innovate and it set foot in the ready-to-drink segment with RoohAfza milkshakes and lassis.
Importantly, the brand has remained connected with Indian festivals. “The brand has kept itself very well connected with the Muslim community of India,” says Ambi Parameswaran, branding expert & founder, Brand-building.com. This close association with a community also made it a punching bag for rival brands. In 2025, yoga proponent and Patanjali Ayurved co-founder Ramdev took potshots at the brand claiming that profits from the drink are used to fund religious structures while Patanjali profits were used to fund educational institutions. The ensuing legal dispute concluded after Ramdev and Patanjali gave formal undertaking not to repeat such claims.
The brand released a campaign following that episode positioning RoohAfza as the ‘Drink of India’, consumed since India’s independence struggle. Currently, the RoohAfza sharbat is available in three pack sizes – a 250 ml bottle for Rs 70, a 750 ml bottle for Rs 170 and a 1.5 l bottle for Rs 325.
The brand also has a ‘Lite’ variant, a zero-sugar version for health conscious buyers, available at Rs 325 for a 750 ml bottle. RoohAfza relies heavily on television — 60% of its advertising budget is allocated to TV and 15% each to radio and print with the remaining 10% `is spent on social media. It has collaborated with influencers who highlighting it during months beyond the festive period. Rooh Afza also offers recipes on reels targeting urban Gen Z with summer mocktails