Enjoy the ad. Feel proud for a few seconds. But make your own decisions.

Sachin’s Gold Ad: Smart, Patriotic, But Only Half the Truth

Sachin Tendulkar’s new Tanishq advertisement is all over the internet right now. He appears in a clean white kurta and says something very emotional:

“India imports hundreds of tons of gold every year. If you exchange your old gold with us, the country will need less gold import. Let’s make India stronger together.”

Hearing this, most of us instantly feel proud. We get goosebumps, and for a moment it feels like buying gold is suddenly a national duty. Many people even feel like rushing to the shop and giving away their mother’s old bangles to “help India.”

But hold on. Let’s talk calmly and simply.

The ad is only 50% correct

It is true that if Indians start exchanging old gold instead of buying new gold every time, India will need to import much less gold. When old gold is exchanged, jewellers melt it and use it again to make new designs. No fresh gold needs to be bought from outside the country. This is genuinely good for the rupee and good for the economy.

But the other 50% of the truth is quietly hidden.

Because most Indians don’t “exchange”—they “exchange + top-up”

Let’s be honest. When you walk into a jewellery shop to exchange an old heavy necklace of 20 grams, you rarely walk out with something of the same weight. You usually see a modern, trendy 15-gram design and fall in love with it.

Then the shopkeeper says, “Madam/Sir, we will take your old 20g, but you have to pay ₹1.5 lakh extra.”

What happens then?

The extra money you pay is used by the company to buy fresh gold from abroad. So the import doesn’t really reduce. It just shifts from your old gold to your wallet.

Indians don’t melt “maa ke kangan” so easily

Gold in Indian homes is not just jewellery. It is:

savings

investment

insurance

emotion

family security

In the last five years, gold has gone from around ₹45,000 to nearly ₹80,000 per 10 grams. Many families saw their simple jewellery become their biggest wealth. So Indians don’t like to melt old gold unless absolutely necessary. Most people keep old gold safe and buy new gold from salary, bonus, or savings.

Pure exchange happens mainly during weddings or urgent situations.

Even jewellers agree on this reality

Big jewellers say that out of 100 customers who come because of Sachin’s ad:

60–70 still buy new gold (some exchange + some extra purchase)

Only 30–40 do a full exchange

So yes, gold imports may reduce a little, maybe by 100–150 tons. But India still imports 700–800 tons every year. Sachin’s ad helps, but it doesn’t completely change the situation.

Why Indians will keep buying new gold

Tell me one investment that:

gave 70–80% return in five years

has zero paperwork

has no tax headache

can be sold anytime

is accepted in every Indian family

Fixed deposits? Small returns.

Land? Stuck for years.

Shares? Too risky.

Gold? Stable, safe, familiar.

That’s why no matter who tells us to reduce gold buying — Sachin, Modi, Ambani, or anyone — Indians will continue buying gold every Diwali, Dhanteras, wedding, or festival.

So what is this ad actually doing?

It is a smart marketing idea, wrapped in a patriotic feeling.

Tanishq benefits because:

1. More people come to their shop (thanks to Sachin).

2. They get old gold, which becomes cheap raw material.

3. Customers pay extra money for new designs.

4. The public feels they are “helping India,” so goodwill becomes free.

Sachin isn’t lying. He is simply telling the nice half of the story. The real half — that Indians will never stop buying new gold — is silently ignored, because no one wants to hear it.

The real takeaway

Enjoy the ad. Feel proud for a few seconds. But make your own decisions.

If old gold is lying unused, exchange it. It’s good for you and slightly good for the country.

If you want to buy new gold because it feels safe, do it without guilt. Your parents did it, you will do it, and your children will also do it.

Sachin inspired us on the cricket field.

Now he inspires us to buy jewellery.

And we happily listen both times.

Jai Hind. Keep shining — old gold or new, doesn’t matter. 😊