Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurved is India's No. 2 advertiser, next only to Hindustan Unilever

Patanjali Ayurved, an Indian FMCG company actively endorsed by yoga guru Baba Ramdev, has emerged as the No. 2 advertiser in India, just behind Dutch-Anglo MNC Unilever's Indian subsidiary, Hindustan Unilever Ltd. (HUL). It also emerged as the second in the list of top 10 brands, below Vodafone, according to the data released for the week January 21-27, 2017 by television audience measurement agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India on Friday. 

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However, the number of insertions (advertisements) for Patanjali Ayurved at 38,886 was far below that of HUL at 97,428.

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Other big spenders on TV ads in India include Reckitt Benckiser (India), Cadburys India, Smithkline Beecham, Brooke Bond Lipton India and Proctor & Gamble. ITC was ranked at 10th position.

From a brands ranking perspective, Fogg Scent, Shopclues, Horlicks, Olx and Maruti Suzuki Ignis were ranked below Vodafone Super Hour and Patanjali Range of Products.

The top TV channels for the reporting week are Sun TV, Star Plus, Colours, Gemini and Zee Telugu.

Patanjali Ayurved recently got a rating upgrade from ICRA for its Rs 300 crore fund-based facilities. Explaining the rating upgrade for PAL, the rating agency said Patanjali Ayurved has been growing steadily over the past few years, increasing its turnover from Rs 2,007 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 4,812 crore the next financial year. For the first seven months of FY2017, the company's turnover was Rs 3,600 crore. 

Over the past few months, PAL has been on an expansive spree, setting up facilities and food parks at Sonitpur, Assam and Nagpur, Maharashtra, apart from signing an agreement to develop herbal forests in Panchkula, Haryana.

HUL shares were trading at Rs 843 apiece on Friday at around 1.07 pm on the BSE, while the Dabur stock was also flat at Rs 272. The BSE Sensex was 66 points down at 28,160. Top Sensex losers were Tata Motors, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank and Power Grid Corporation.