Sandalwood Soap

Before economic liberalization, we Indians had limited options when it came to consumer products. For cars, you had a choice between a steadfast Amby and a stylish fiat. If you could not afford a car, then you could ride a yezdi or a bullet or a TVS. And if you wanted to "take" a bucket bath, then you could choose between medicinal dettol soap (chee!) or liril which made you (if you were male) fantasize about a lascivious image of a hot Indian woman singing "La..la la la la la" under a luxuriant waterfall!

BUT..If you wanted an upgradation to your morning ablutions there was always Mysore sandalwood soap! Sandalwood soap was all the rage for the upwardly mobile Indian! It was regal (built by the Maharaja of Mysore), premium, had exotic sounding ingredients like Jojoba oil, was emblazoned with mythological symbolism (the Sharabha) and made you smell like a wooded forest. What more could you ask for?

Fast forward 30 years and the brand is teetering on the edge of irrelevance. Sandalwood reserves are being depleted and the brand has faced increasing competition from Western counterparts.

Will the brand survive? Can it be traditional with modern outlook? Or will it slowly sink into obscurity, a relic of a simpler, more natural time where baths were taken in buckets and soaps were made from wood.