Soft drinks or soda water also called carbonated water is one of the most consuming products among Indian youths. Not only India but all over the world soft drinks become the Fast-moving consumer goods(FMCG).
Due to the humid climate of India popularity of soft drinks increase day by day among Indian youth. Here in this article, I will tell you the top 10 soft drink brands in India with the price list. Also, After reading the full article you will know the highest selling & most popular soft drink brand in India.
Although drinking carbonated water has multiple cons but it is suppressed by the attractive advertisement and spirit by the soft drinks company.
Here are the top 10 most popular soft drink brands in India with the highest selling products and price list.
1. Coca-Cola
Foundation: Coca-cola is the oldest soft drink brand in the world. Found on May 8, 1886, by “Dr.John Smith Pemberton” in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. He was a local chemist who produces the coca-cola drink.
Branding: In 1886 the name of this company was “Soda fountain drink” and sell in Jacobs’ pharmacy at 5 cents per glass. Later it was rebrand “coca-cola”. The name coca-cola is suggested by a book-keeper “Frank M. Robinson”.
Now it is one of the famous and best soft drink Brands in India as well as the world. Coca-cola is available with its 200+ products in all the countries in the world.
Coca-cola’s advertising is amazing and unique. The brand ambassador of coca-cola in India is “Ranbir Kapoor” heartthrob of Bollywood.
Unique Bottle shape: The unique bottle design of coca-cola is first appear in 1915. And from then to still now this is one of the best shape bottles in the world.
Color & Taste: Actually the color of coca-cola drink is caramel color. Because it is the color and sweeten ingredient that coca-cola used. But some artificial colors also used in coca-cola. Generally, it comes with deep-black, brown & colorless like sprite in India.
The taste of coca-cola comes from the flavor. Actually, you can’t decide it’s taste. I only get the sweeten taste and some different flavor taste for different types of coca-cola.
Due to the unique bottle shape, attractive advertising coca-cola is the highest selling soft drinks in the world.
Price and Package: The price of coca-cola depends on its package and amount of drink. It comes with 300ml(glass bottle) for around 15 rupees and 600ml(plastic bottle) around 35rupees and 1.25 lit around 61 rupees.
2. Pepsi
Foundation: Pepsi, the 2-nd largest and oldest cola brand in the world. It was found North carolina, USA in 1893 by “Cleb Bradham”.
Branding: First its name was “Brad Drinks” in 1893 and renamed “Pepsi cola” in 1898. Further, it was rebranded “Pepsi” in 1961. In 1989 PepsiCo enter India and becomes one of the largest MNC food and beverage businesses in India.
The first advertising theme was “Delicious and Healthful”. First-time Pepsi was sold 5 cents per 5-6 ounce.
Pepsi has a unique logo and is the biggest rivalry with coca-cola.
Pepsi makes ‘Salman khan’ its brand ambassador in 2019 to attract Salman’s fan and now in 2020 ‘Safali Verma‘ an Indian women cricketer is the brand ambassador of Pepsi.
The advertising of Pepsi-cola is also amazing and unique. Due to this reason Pepsi product is the 2-nd highest-selling cola in the world and one of the most popular soft drink brands in India.
Color & Taste: The color of Pepsi is caramel due to the natural color of caramel. also in India, it comes with deep black color.
Separate variant of Pepsi has separate taste. Actually, it is tested sweet and some flavor like cherry and vanilla.
Price & Packaging: Pepsi comes with several packaging and different price. You will get 250 ml of regular Pepsi for 15 rupees and 600 ml at just 20 rupees. Also, it has diet Pepsi which is 25 rupees for 300ml.
Foundation: Thumb Up was the 1-st Indian soft drink brand. It was founded in 1977 to withdraw coca-cola. But later it was acquired by coca-cola company.
Branding: In 2012 Thumb Up was the leader of the Indian soft drink market. But after 2013 due to the lack of advertising, it loses its popularity among Indian youth. But still, now it is popular in India as one of the best soft drink brands in India.
The brand logo of Thumb Up is unique and it is a sign of thumb in red color. The advertising of Thumb up is amazing. The advertising theme is “The test of thunder”. The Bollywood star Salman Khan, Ranbir Singh was the brand ambassador of thumb up in India.
Color & Taste: The color of thumb up is dark brown or simply dark. The taste of thumb up is actually unknown. You will get the sweetened taste and some flavor taste.
Due to these factor thumb up is the 2-nd highest selling soft drink in india after sprite.
Ingredients: According to coca cola company thumb up contains the listed ingredients
Carbonated Water
Sugar
Acidity Regulator
Caffeine
Natural color
And some flavor
Price & Packaging: Thumb up comes with 600 ml bottle for 35 rupees and 1.25 lit for aprox 70 rupees.
Thumb up comes with only plastic bottles so, its price is something high. But the quality of bottle is very good. You can reuse this bottle for carrying water for a long time.
4. Sprite
Sprite is a sub-brand of coca-cola. It was first introduced by coca-cola in 1961 for youth age people. And in India, It is the best and most selling soft drink among Indian youth.
Sprite is a lemon and lime flavored carbonated drink. It was first introoduced in garmany to complete with pepsi.
Sprite is colorless and its test is sweet and some lemmon flavor also added on it.
The price is same as thumb up 600 ml for 35 rupees and 1.25 liter for around 65 rupees.
Again this is a US brand of lemon and lime flavor soft drink. 7-up is the biggest rival of sprite. This is the 2-nd most popular lemon and lime flavor brand in India.
7-up is first introduced in 1929 by “Charles Leiper Grigg”. And the first name of this soda water was “Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda”. Lather the name changed to “7 Up Lithiated Lemon Soda” and further in 1936 its name change into “7-up”.
The color of 7-up is colorless, pink, and cherry color. The taste of this soft drink is lemon and lime flavor with sweetness.
7- up is extensively used in cocktail party also it is used in non alcoholic punch.
7-up comes with 600ml bottle for 35 rupees.
6. Mountain Dew
Mountain Dew is a US brand. That is a sub-brand of Pepsico company. Mountain dew is first introduced in 1940 in the USA.
The color of this soft drink is green. The taste of mountain dew is the same as 7-up. This brand is popular in India due to its color and taste.
It is popular among Indians for its amazing advertising. The theme of their advertisement is “Dar Ke agge jit hai”
This is a refreshing soft drink like sprite. So, in hot weather with a mountain dew feeling awesome.
7. Limca
Limca is a sub-brand of coca-cola. Is first introduced in 1977 by coca-cola brand in India. Limca is an Indian origin brand. Also, it is popular in some parts of the USA.
This brand is launched by coca-cola especially for Indian fans of lime and lemon flavor soft drinks. Although its popularity is not so good as sprite. But still keeps its popularity in some states of India.
Although it looks like fruit juice but limca does not contain any fruit juice. Taste of this soda water is same as sprite and 7-up. And color of this drink is colorless.
Limca also publishes the Limca Book of Records, a record book similar to the Guinness Book of Records, which started originally by Ramesh Chauhan. The Limca Book of Records details feats, records, and other unique statistics from an Indian perspective.
8. Frooti
Frooti is one of the biggest Indian soft drink brands with mango flavor. It is the highest-selling mango flavor product in India also in the world too.
It is export to United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Maldives, Singapore, Thailand, New Zealand, Australia, Mozambique, Ghana, Malawi, Zambia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Japan, Ireland, and many other countries.
Footi is first come in Indian market when all the companies focuses on carbonated drinks in 1985 by parle agro company. Due to the mango flavor, it is famous not only in India but also all over the world.
Footi gives you the taste of mango in any season. As footi does not contain carbonated water is has the permission to sell its product in school, college, park, and many other places where children go. Due to the mango juice color and mango flavor, it is famous among Indian children.
9. Fanta
Fanta is a fruit juice flavor cold drinks manufactured by coca-cola company again. This brand is introduced in the market in 1940 in Germany(beverage flavor) and Italy(Orange version).
This brand is launch in Indian market in 1993 after seeing the biggest success of Frooti. Fanta is actually launched to give a competition against footi. But is was too late. Then footi acquired the market as a fruit flavor cols drink.
Due to the taste of mango flavor footi in India Fanta fail to gain the highest Indian market. But now due to the different fruit flavor versions of Fanta it become popular in India but not as much as Footi.
Funta comes with several colors and a multiple variant of flavor. The price of fanta is 30, 78, and 95 rupees for 600ml, 1.25lit, and 2 lit bottles.
10. Maaza
Maaza is a fruit drink Indian brand. It is launched in India in 1976. But later coca-cola acquired this brand in 1993 from Parle Bisleri along with other brands such as Limca, Thumb up, and Gold spot.
It is started to sell in the US and Europe markets from 2006. Initially, maaza was a mango drink but after acquired by coca-cola they started producing two more versions of maaza one is orange, and the other is pineapple.
Maaza is a very testy fruit drink and does not contain carbon-di-oxide. So it is safer than other coca-cola and Pepsi products. The taste of this cold drink is sweet with mango or orange or pineapple flavor.
Coca-cola acquired this brand to competes with Slice brand of mango drink and Frooti manufactured by parle Agro company.
The advertising theme of maaza is “King of Mangoes”. Maaza gives you the taste of mango in any season without mango. Fot this reason Maaza is one of the best fruit based soft drink in Indian.
Maaza comes with 600ml for 35 rupees only and 1.5lit for 66 rupees. If you do not taste maaza then definitely try it out.
Apart from the above list, there are many more soft drinks available in India and they are also popular in many states in our country. Some of them are-
Slice
Aquafina
Kinley
Mirinda
Although Soft drinks are harmful to our health but drinking cold drinks in summer is an amazing feeling. Soft drinks mainly contain sugar, carbonated water, caffeine and some flavour.
Drinking too much soft drinks can cause breathing difficulty as they contain carbon dioxide. You can enjoy these soft drinks in a cocktail party in a limit.
