This Independence Day, perhaps it is time to declare another kind of freedom: freedom from ageism in advertising. At a time when brands are increasingly turning to celebrities who have spent decades in the spotlight, the definition of the ‘marketable’ star is changing. Experience is no longer being treated as a liability.
For years, brands chased the newest faces to appear young, relevant and culturally plugged in. But lately, marketers are challenging another old assumption: that relevance has an age limit. From Shah Rukh Khan and Milind Soman to Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, familiar faces are finding fresh roles beyond the stereotypes attached to age. As sponsored content becomes ubiquitous, are brands discovering that credibility and cultural relevance need not come with an expiry date?
For Joy Personal Care, Shah Rukh Khan’s appeal went far beyond his celebrity status. “We wanted a voice, a person who can increase the brand’s credibility, who can talk to the masses and is someone who is liked by men, women, children, everyone,” says Poulomi Roy, Chief Marketing Officer, Joy Personal Care.
The brand was looking to strengthen its face wash category, which it saw as increasingly gender-neutral. Finding a personality who could speak across demographics became central to the strategy.
“The moment you put these things together, there are very few faces that come to your mind and Mr Khan is just one of those few personalities who has transcended the boundaries of gender, age, every group of people,” Roy explains.
While the brand sees 20-25 per cent growth YoY, Roy believes the power of a celebrity endorsement today is less about creating immediate sales spikes and more about creating confidence, she says, “In this day and age when so much is spoken about various types of products and there is so much competition in the market, what he primarily does is bring credibility. You tend to believe that this person is never going to endorse something which he doesn’t trust.”
That trust becomes particularly valuable when consumers are faced with endless choices. The same thought process shaped Tasty Nibbles’ decision to appoint Milind Soman as the brand ambassador.
Unlike celebrities who simply lend their face to a campaign, Soman’s personal brand has long been associated with fitness, discipline and healthy living, making him a natural fit for a company looking to promote healthier eating habits. “Milind Soman was the obvious choice as he personifies the values Tasty Nibbles stands for today: health, discipline, authenticity and consistency,” says a spokesperson for the brand.
As the company looks to expand its presence in India’s convenience food market, particularly in protein-rich offerings such as canned tuna, it wanted an ambassador whose lifestyle aligned with the brand promise.
“We’re not just about celebrity visibility; we’re about meaningful alignment and for decades, Milind has been establishing trust in the fitness and healthy living space,” the spokesperson says.
This emphasis on trust surfaces repeatedly when marketers talk about veteran ambassadors. While creators can generate engagement and conversations, brands argue that long-term brand building often requires something deeper. “Today, consumers are hit with thousands of messages each day. There, credibility can be a game-changer.” says the Tasty Nibbles spokesperson.
The company does not frame the conversation as a battle between influencers and established personalities. Both have a role to play. But when it comes to encouraging consumers to make decisions around health and nutrition, familiarity and trust can carry more weight than short-term visibility.
“Consumers are becoming increasingly discerning and more interested in authenticity than visibility,” the spokesperson adds. That observation reflects a broader industry sentiment.
According to Neelesh Pednekar, Co-Founder and Head of Digital Media at Social Pill, the resurgence of veteran celebrities is partly a response to the evolution of influencer culture itself. “Influencer marketing has matured to a point where audiences are increasingly fluent in spotting inauthenticity. The sponsored post format has been overused, and trust deficits are real,” he says.
In such an environment, brands are looking for personalities whose credibility exists independently of the campaigns they appear in. “Legacy celebrities bring something that cannot be manufactured quickly: decades of public familiarity. Audiences have watched them across contexts, through cultural shifts and across life stages.” Pednekar says.
That accumulated goodwill acts as what he calls a ‘trust shortcut’ for brands. Importantly, Pednekar believes the trend is not simply driven by nostalgia. “It is not nostalgia for its own sake. It is a strategic bet on credibility in a landscape where attention is abundant but trust is scarce”, he says.
The commercial advantages are equally compelling. “The core advantage is recognition without explanation. The brand borrows an existing emotional relationship rather than building one from scratch,” Pednekar says.
Abhijat Bharadwaj, Chief Creative Officer, Dentsu Creative Isobar, sees this as a key difference between celebrity and influencer fame. “Influencer marketing is about finding maximum clout amongst micro-targeted niches. As a result, influencers that are followed by millions, are unknown to billions. But the fame of celebrities extends beyond the niche following of influencers.”
“A Shah Rukh Khan appeals to all ages because his fandom has the mass appeal of a religion,” he says. “The older section of his fans, who fell in love with him ages ago, have all grown up (as have their bank accounts’ spending power), which helps brands recoup greater ROI.”
For mass-market brands, that kind of instant recognition can be difficult to replicate through newer personalities. He points to partnerships such as Shah Rukh Khan and Joy Personal Care or Milind Soman’s recent endorsements as examples where the association immediately resonates across age groups and geographies.
The appeal also extends beyond reach. Many marketers are beginning to distinguish between visibility and relevance. “The obsession with trend-driven visibility was always a metric problem. Impressions and reach are easy to report. Brand trust and purchase intent are harder to measure but more consequential,” Pednekar says.
But the argument for veteran stars is not simply about what they have built in the past. According to Sanjay Trehan, Digital Media Advisor, staying relevant and maintaining a strong connection with consumers are equally important.
“Besides relevance and credibility, what is also important is connect with the consumers. If a celebrity has kept up with the times, has high credibility and built a deep connection with a large audience, then age is just a number,” Trehan says.
For brands, therefore, age becomes secondary when the personality continues to reflect the values and aspirations of the brand. “If the celebrity represents the brand values, and is in sync with brand aspirations, age wouldn’t matter,” he adds.
Trehan believes the real test lies in the strength of the association. “It is a question of resonance with brand persona and values, authenticity of storytelling, credibility of the celebrity, and if the cross-generational appeal works for the brand.”
That is perhaps why endorsements such as Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s association with JW Marriott feel different from a typical celebrity campaign. “A personality like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan fronting JW Marriott works because she embodies an aspiration that the brand wants to own, not because she is trending,” Pednekar explains.
For Trehan, the value of such personalities can extend beyond immediate commercial objectives. “Experience and cultural authority are the key drivers that help brands go beyond the transactional imperative to building a more sustainable, purposeful and long-term connection with the customers,” he says.
Bharadwaj sees this longevity as another advantage. “Amidst the short-lived influence of influencer reels, the long-term aura of veteran celebrities towers above the noise like giants,” he says. “That’s because you choose your favourite celebrities when you’re young and grow up with their careers. And as they evolve, new fans join the bandwagon. It’s a one-time, lifelong decision. The kind of loyalty that brands can build on.”
Celebrity icons may also help brands counter influencer fatigue at a time when the number of influencers continues to mushroom. As brands navigate fragmented audiences and increasingly skeptical consumers, the return of veteran ambassadors suggests a subtle but significant change in how age is viewed in celebrity marketing.
Freedom from ageism, Trehan argues, is ultimately rooted in “brand values, celebrity sway and marketing that recognises that it needs to go beyond the transitory.” The goal is simply not just to be seen. It is to be believed.
