There was a recent controversy around allopathic medicine and its efficacy in treating Covid-19. Yoga guru Baba Ramdev, who is also the owner of the ayurvedic products company, Patanjali, rebuked western medicine and claimed that indigenous herbal medicine is superior when it comes to treating the lethal disease. His statement came in for sharp criticism and the Indian Medical Association wrote a formal letter to the health minister seeking action against the yoga guru. The health minister was forced to write to Ramdev asking him to withdraw his statement.
But the larger question is what are the thoughts, choices and preferences of Indians on this issue? Those of us who grew up in the pre-liberalisation era will remember the craze for western products that sneaked into India through black market importers or the neighbourhood uncle who was lucky enough to travel abroad and bring back western branded soaps, shampoos, chocolates and colas that the middle-class craved for.
Has India now changed considerably? Do most Indians prefer ayurvedic herbal products over the West acclaimed and proven brands? Prashnam decided to find out. We posed an innocuous question: which shampoo would urban Indians prefer if they are all the same cost? We wanted to know if there is a natural preference to Indian ayurvedic herbal brands or do people prefer international brands.
We asked 2,733 Indians from 297 urban cities and towns the following two questions:
Which of these types do you prefer to use as shampoo if both are of the same cost?
1: Ayurvedic herbal shampoo
2: International branded shampoo
3: Whichever is easy to get
4: Whichever my friends or family suggest
How do you mostly pay for things you buy in a store?
1: Digital payment like PayTM or Google Pay
2: Cash
3: Both equally
Respondent profile: The respondents were from nine states — Bihar, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, belonging to 108 districts. 66 per cent were male and 34 per cent female. 67 per cent were youth (<40 years), 28 per cent middle aged and five per cent seniors (>60).
Also read: Visit Ayurveda practitioners for mild Covid, have Chyawanprash & haldi milk: Niti Aayog
57 per cent prefer ayurvedic shampoo
A significant majority of urban Indians (57 per cent) preferred an ayurvedic herbal shampoo over an international branded shampoo. This is a significant sociological change in 21st century India vis-à-vis the 70s and 80s. What explains this shift is for sociologists and other scholars to study.
Cash is still the king
Fifty-two per cent of the respondents prefer to pay in cash but at the same time, there also seems to be a shift to modern digital modes of payment for purchases. A sizeable share — of more than 30 per cent (22 per cent plus half of 26 per cent) say they use digital payment methods to pay for their purchases.
The survey suggests Indians prefer domestic brands more but use modern modes of payment for their purchases.
As a matter of rigour and transparency, we have made available the entire raw data of this survey for interested people to verify, test and validate.
Rajesh Jain is founder, Prashnam, an AI technology start-up that aims to make opinion gathering more scientific, easy, fast, and affordable. Views are personal.
The article is part of ThePrint-Prashnam Vox Pop series.
(Edited by Anurag Chaubey)