Melody to Melodi: How a 1983 Indian candy turned into a diplomatic symbol

Key points

• Back in 1983, when Parle launched Melody, nobody imagined the tiny caramel-chocolate toffee would one day become part of international diplomacy.
• It was never marketed as luxury.
• It was never aspirational.
• Melody was the kind of candy stuffed into school bags, bought from neighbourhood kirana shops, or added as change by local shopkeepers.
• Cheap, familiar, and instantly recognisable in its brown-and-yellow wrapper, it became part of India’s everyday snack culture.