An AI-generated video showcasing hyper-realistic versions of some of India’s most beloved brand mascots has recently gone viral on LinkedIn, drawing both admiration and concern from viewers.
Shared by Shahid SK, an AI enthusiast, the project creatively reimagines well-known brand characters such as the Amul Girl, the Maharaja from Air India, Gattu from Asian Paints, Bholu the Indian Railways guard, the iconic Nirma Girl, Parle-G’s biscuit child, Fido Dido from 7UP, and Chester Cheetah from Cheetos. Using the generative AI tools, Shahid brought these characters to life in what he described as a “hyper-realistic world.”
In the video, the Amul Girl is seen delightfully feasting on a pyramid of cheese, while the Parle-G girl squats cheerfully atop a mound of the biscuit brand’s famous rectangular treats. Air India’s Maharaja, now sporting a polished look, greets viewers with a stiff smile. In one particularly vivid clip, the Nirma Girl dances in her iconic polka dot frock as a predominantly white audience applauds in the background.
Captioning the video, Shahid wrote:
“Reimagining Iconic Brand Mascots in Real Life😀❤️
I thought of using AI to reimagine iconic mascots like the Amul Girl, the Maharaja of Air India, Bholu from Indian Railways, Gattu from Asian Paints, the Nirma Girl, Fido Dido from 7UP, and Chester Cheetah from Cheetos in a hyper-realistic world.
The results are pretty impressive, right?😊
This video was created with the help of AI / is AI-generated.”
The post quickly caught the attention of professionals and creatives across the platform, many of whom praised the project’s ingenuity and technical execution. However, the response was not universally positive.
One LinkedIn user raised concerns about the ethics of using mascots with deeply personal origins, highlighting that the Nirma Girl was, in fact, based on the daughter of the brand’s founder. “Great effort, but something about it bothers me personally. Some of these logos like Nirma, is the actual daughter of the founder. Somehow I believe that using pictures with such personal stories could be violation of privacy and ethically concerning. While you have used it in a creative way, there would exist people who would not. Not to discourage you, you did well! Would love it if you could come up with your interpretation of these logos and then perhaps a video, commented a LinkedIn user.”
Others brought up issues surrounding copyright and intellectual property rights. A user remarked, “Generative AI is an expert in creating illustrations but is a nightmare for designers!!.”
Another observed the tension between human artistry and machine-led creativity, saying, “This is creepy.”
While Shahid did not disclose the specific tools used in generating the video, the quality and animation suggest the involvement of recent advancements in image-to-video AI platforms, many of which have exploded in popularity over the past year.