Brand Dhoni may take a dip

India's cricket team skipper M S Dhoni and off-spinner Harbhajan Singh's no-show at the national awards ceremony on April 14 may cast a slight blur on their brand, at least in the short term. Advertisers and media managers feel that ‘Brand Dhoni' may be affected as he skipped the Padma awards function, the most prestigious national awards ceremony.

Santosh Desai CEO Future Brands says, "Dhoni's absence, considering he is India's cricket team captain, is potentially more damaging than Harbhajan's. Also, it might be the starting of a story which could affect his image if he slips on something in future".

"Cricketers like Dhoni are huge national icons, either on or off the field and hence carry a big responsibility with their celebrity status endorsing big brands. It could impact (them) from a personality perspective. Companies which are riding on him are not going to like it too much", an executive with a company, which has signed up Dhoni, said.

Dhoni is a hot property as far as advertisers are concerned, with 31 brands riding on him including softdrink major Pepsi, Aircel, Dabur Honey, Exide, TVS Motors and Brylcreem hair gel. Though advertisers do not disclose contract amounts, but market experts estimate that Dhoni may well be earning between Rs 1-2 crore per contract annually. Harbhajan endorses two brands according to AdEx India.

Both Dhoni and Singh have kicked up a row by staying away from the awards ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday. Many feel that it was a big disrespect to the highest honour which is bestowed on any Indian, and the cricketers should have taken time out of "signing endorsement deals" to attend the function.

However, there are some who feel that the event will have no impact on the cricketers' brand (value).Says Prasoon Joshi, executive chairman McCann Worldgroup India and regional executive creative director Asia Pacific, "Cricketers are the most vulnerable, and advertising is an easy target. I don't think it will have an impact on their brands. We are living in a dynamic world constantly seeking gratification. After a while, people will forget it".

A cricketer's `brand' goes up if he scores well on the field, and is judged more in terms of his performance on the field, feel companies."People will only remember this incident for a short while. The image of the brand that they endorse does not get affected. What may affect them more is their performance on the field", Samir Gangahar executive director of advertising company, Leo Burnett says.

Interestingly over recent times, Brand Dhoni is getting bigger than it used to be, but master blaster Sachin Tendulkar is "still an icon and commands mass connectivity", advertisers say. Sachin, who endorses 13 brands, was recently roped by Jaypee Cement as their brand ambassador.