When Parle-G replaced iconic baby's image with this Indian CEO's face

Parle sent Radhika Gupta a poster with an image of a customised Parle-G cover.

Radhika Gupta, the Managing Director and CEO of Edelweiss Mutual Fund, on Wednesday shared what she termed her “first wow advertising moment”, when she was featured on the cover of a Parle-G in a special note that the biscuit-maker sent her.

Recalling when she had just joined as the CEO of Edelweiss Mutual Fund, Gupta said she used to write a monthly article in the company’s factsheet in an attempt to connect with investors. In one of the articles, she spoke about the power and simplicity of financial products like mutual funds, comparing them to Parle-G, the iconic yet humble Indian biscuit.

Radhika Gupta, 40, said Parle-G biscuits are “available even on India’s remotest borders”.

A week after her article was published, Gupta received a surprise.

“A Parle-G version of me, along with a lot of yummy biscuits. And since then, this picture remains on my wall as a reminder of how it takes not a big budget but a differentiated thought to catch an eye,” she wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.

Throwback to my first wow advertising moment.

When I had just started as MF CEO, used to write a monthly article in our factsheet to try and connect with investors in a unique way. In one of them I talked about the power of simple products like mutual funds and simplicity in… pic.twitter.com/bzGWZJMFsu — Radhika Gupta (@iRadhikaGupta) December 20, 2023

Parle had sent her a poster featuring an image of a Parle-G cover, expect that the iconic baby featured on the biscuit packet was replaced with Gupta’s face. In a heart-warming note, Parle wrote to her, “Dear Radhika Gupta, we, at Parle-G, couldn’t have wished for a better start to 2018.” The biscuit-maker thanked her for mentioning Parle-G to talk about simplicity and comfort in business.

Gupta, who had become one of the country's youngest CEOs at 33, recently joined as a judge for the third season of startup reality show “Shark Tank India”.

Gupta returned to work in just six weeks after giving birth to her son last year and has often spoken about juggling her career and motherhood.