Flipkart Minutes' viral 'magic ink' newspaper ad turns water into a solution for spilled milk. Video

Flipkar Minutes

Pratik Shetty, head of marketing and media at Flipkart, has unveiled a unique newspaper advertisement across Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Delhi’s Sunday editions today. The ad for Flipkart Minutes, the company's quick commerce delivery service, posted on LinkedIn with a video, invites readers to pour water on their morning newspapers, revealing a hidden message that reappears when dry.

“We have finally reached that point where we are asking you to pour water on your morning newspaper,” Shetty wrote. “No need to panic for last-minute needs anymore as we will deliver everything that you need in minutes.”

The innovative approach is designed not only to engage readers but also to create a memorable and interactive experience. The ad features specialised hydro-chromic screen printing ink that, when wet, reveals additional content which dries and reappears, making it a fun activity to do with children.

The full page ad reads: “Don’t cry over spilt milk. Add water to the milk and see what happens.”

The ad shows a graphic of a family at breakfast with milk spilled all over the dining area. In the video, featuring a man and a child, who put water on the paper and the milk disappears giving way to the full picture.

Shetty tagged the team at Flipkart and Leo Burnett India, the creative agency behind the ad, for their collaborative effort in making this unique campaign possible. Deep Shah, from the printing team, commented on the post, explaining that the special ink and its application were done at one of their units.

Blinkit and Zepto also have their own takes on milk delivery with the spilt milk angle.

Competitors Blinkit and Zepto too have their own ads, albeit simpler, for milk delivery in minutes.

Launched in August in select areas of Bengaluru, Flipkart Minutes is leveraging introductory discounts, a common strategy among new entrants like Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), Amazon, Ola, and Swiggy to build demand and secure customer loyalty.

The price of products are about 10 percent lower on Flipkart Minutes, the latest entrant in the quick commerce space, when compared with Blinkit, the current market leader, according to analysts at UBS.