PepsiCo dumps MS Dhoni, ends 11-year-old association, Virat Kohli new icon

    New Delhi: MS Dhoni, the man with the Midas touch, seems to be having a rough ride as far as his luck goes. In recent times, the Captain Cool has not been able to inspire Team India to any significant win and the ‘best finisher’ in him also failed to live up to his image. And now, endorsements have also started slipping out of India’s ODI and Twenty20 captain’s hands. PepsiCo, one of the largest food, snack and beverage companies in the world, has ended its 11-year association with Dhoni, indicating a fall in his market value, appeal and popularity among advertisers, according to a report in The Economic Times. Dhoni’s association with PepsiCo dates back to 2005 and he was the face of Pepsi Cola and Lay's chips. "At PepsiCo, our focus in advertising and marketing is to make our products the hero and celebrate the hero," PepsiCo V-P for beverages Vipul Prakash confirmed the development. "The idea will always play the most important role. If there's a role for the celebrity that helps take forward the idea of celebrating our product, we're more than happy to taking it further." PepsiCo, which makes an array of popular products in the market like 7Up and Mountain Dew drinks and Kurkure snacks besides its mainstay Pepsi Cola and Lay's chips, has always hired top stars from sports and Bollywood to endorse its products. Popular names currently endorsing PepsiCo brands include cricketer Virat Kohli and actors Ranbir Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra. Dhoni's manager and founder of Rhiti Sports Management Arun Pandey, said did not respond to the queries on PepsiCo matter. According to the experts quoted in the report, Kohli’s emergence as an icon might have affected Dhoni's run with advertisers. Kohli’s appeal with the youth makes him attractive for advertisers. India’s Test captain is said to be charging close to Rs 2 crore a day against Rs 1.5 crore by Dhoni. Also, Dhoni's Rs 8 crore asking price for annual contracts do not have many takers, experts said. "Brands like Pepsi are vibrant and youthful," said entertainment marketing company Percept's joint managing director Shailendra Singh. "While Dhoni has had his place in the sun, it's the younger ones like Virat with whom advertisers with youthful brands are likely to resonate with now." The list of brands that Dhoni endorsed has also shrunk from 18 (including Pepsi, Reebok, Boost, Dabur, Sony, TVS Motors, Videocon, Orient Fans and Big Bazaar, for which he was charging Rs 10-12 crore each) in 2014 to less than 10 currently.