Amul Girl’s creator Sylvester daCunha dies: A look at some ‘utterly butterly’ facts about the Amul icon

The quintessential Amul Girl needs no special introduction. The quirky blue-haired mascot of the dairy brand has always kept us glued to the Amul Topicals. Be it the catchy slogans or the fun-filled one-liners.  

From a brand mascot to completing the Golden Jubilee, The Amul Girl has come a long way

Here are some little-known “utterly butterly” facts about the Amul icon

– The mascot was created by advertising czar Sylvester daCunha in 1966. DaCunha died at 80 in Mumbai on Tuesday, June 20. He has played an important role in making this campaign successful for years. 

Sorry to hear about the passing on of Sylvester daCunha, Advertising legend & founder of da Cunha Associates. He was the man behind the AMUL girl in 1967 & brother of the late Gerson DaCunha. Deepest condolences to Mrs. Nisha da Cunha & son Rahul. May he rest in eternal peace. pic.twitter.com/GrObE8BaIp

— Lloyd Mathias (@LloydMathias) June 21, 2023

– According to the book Amul’s India 3.0, the dairy brand went with their key product, i.e., butter, and approached the advertising agency, namely, the Advertising and Sales Promotion Company. They took all the key details about the mascot and created ‘Amul Girl’. 

– Sylvester daCunha, who was the manager of the advertising agency then, made the mascot in such a manner that it still stands out in the league.

‘Utterly butterly’ Slogan

- It is said that the idea for the hit tagline “utterly butterly” was conceptualised by Sylvester daCunha’s wife, Nisha. She came up with the jungle ‘Utterly Amul, and Sylvester daCunha added ‘Butterly’ to it. Along with the catchy tagline ‘Utterly Butterly Amul’, the mascot was introduced to the public by putting them on lamp posts in Mumbai.

– The Amul Girl was sketched by Eustace Fernandes.

– Sylvester's son Rahul da Cunha had said, "She [ Amul Girl] became like the Michelin Man, that kind of character."

Sylvester daCunha’s vision

- Wondering how the Amul Topical came into existence? Rahul da Cunha added, "At some point, I think Dad realized that just talking about butter wouldn't sustain itself for long. So he hit on this idea of social commentary. At a certain point, it went from commenting on one topic a month, or every two months, to what we do now—which is literally looking at a topic almost every day." 

Amul Topicals

– What Amul posted on International Yoga Day

 

 

 

 

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Some of the previous topicals - 

 

 

 

 

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