Pistas are cool now…are you?

Pistas are cool now…are you? 

Do you remember the Tata Tea Jaago Re " rel="dofollow noopener" target="_blank">campaign on exam pressure that came out around 7 years ago? 

The son is worried about his results, father on the other hand is unbothered & takes him to get some ice cream.  On being asked what if he fails? The father answers ‘tab pista ice cream kha lenge’. 

 

Amazing campaign, but that’s not why I mention it today. This is for a quick #throwback to how unpopular pistachio was as a flavour back then. I remember when during the summers, Railway Canteen would run out of all ‘Energee’ (Aarey’s flagship milk drink) flavours, except pista. The only use of the nut was probably in Indian deserts or in referencing the color of a salwar suit. 

But now pista is cool. 

To begin with it is ‘Pistachio’ now & to be fair it made a massive comeback on the back of the viral Dubai Chocolate and Kanefeh trend. 

Will the trend spark a pistachio shortage like the ‘sometimes you have to eat an entire cucumber’ trend did for cucumbers? Maybe not. But the trend is definitely big enough for Magum to end its 8 year long hiatus and launch a Pistachio Magnum Bar. Fancy, right? 

According to the brand’s official press release, “The new flavour, a nod to the internet-breaking Dubai chocolate trend, promises a symphony of creaminess and nuttiness. Magnum, known for its opulent partnerships and Cannes shenanigans, is banking on this new launch to keep its crown as the king of indulgent ice cream.”

The Grand Pista Makeover 

Being the food content consumer that I am - I started noticing pistachio flavoured sweet treats in global content creators’ accounts, nearly 2 years ago. From McDonald’s Pistachio McFlurry in a couple global markets to Pistachio flavoured croissants and other pastries being made in local cafes in USA, Europe. Back then I attributed it to the local flavours.

But pistachio has since been making its way gradually. 

In October last year, Wendy’s launched its pistachio frosty in KSA. While the launch was received with mixed reactions, they didn’t know that they're going to be swept with the Dubai Chocolate trend very soon.

Dubai Chocolate, which has its own Wikipedia page by the way, was launched in 2024 by Fix Dessert Chocolatier in Dubai (duh) under the name of "Can't Get Knafeh of It". Will you believe that Fix Desserts were inspired by its founder’s pregnancy cravings? Well, I can, mainly because it is true, but you know what I mean. 

And the world of our humble pistas hasn’t been the same since. 

The Global Food Trend 

Dubai Chocolate has since sparked a food trend that shows no signs of slowing down.

The chocolate gained so much popularity that soon brands like Lindt were making it and a court case ensued. 

Starbucks launched ‘Pistachio Cream Cold Brew’ and Shake Shack launched their Dubai Chocolate Pistachio Shake which actually combines two food trends - Dubai Chocolate and ‘Cracking Coffee’.  And obviously Oreo launched a Dubai Chocolate filling variant in KSA. 

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India too has been harping on this trend. While chefs have been incorporating the Dubai Chocolate trend in cheesecakes, yogurts, and more. Bigger chains have also jumped the wagon. 

Mad Over Donuts has its Kunafa Donuts while Zuci Chocolates champions the trend with various iterations such as  Pistachio filled dates, gelato, and more. Bombay Sweet Shop briefly also had the Dubai Chocolate Kunafa Ghevar. 

 

 

And then we have the aforementioned Dubai Chocolate Magnum and of course the many, many knock offs of the chocolate itself that you find at cafes and kiosks at very, very expensive prices. 

 

 

Why am I obsessing over pistachios you ask? 

Food trends taking over the world is not remotely a new phenomenon. Just a few months ago we had the croissant cookies and if I am not mistaken they are still available at Blue Tokai. 

It is the journey that the nut has taken on the back of this trend that has me thinking. Please don’t get me wrong, in no way was pista as hated as Soan Papdi, but it definitely wasn’t a ‘cool’ flavour. 

In fact let’s take a look at a more recent example. Third Wave Coffee when first started its expansion in Mumbai, had iterations of a Pistachio Latte - a limited edition drink; but the pista latte did not return to its menu (not yet, at least). 

On the contrary, Poetry By Love & Cheesecake had its pistachio yoghurt cake since 2020 but since last year has also added Ghewar Pistachio Cheesecake, Vegan Lemon Pistachio and Raspberry Cake, Wild Strawberry and Pistachio Chiboust, and a Pistachio Layered Cheesecake. 

And not to miss the ‘The Better Nut’ campaign by Wonderful Pistachios, the grower and distributor of California Pistachios. Rooted in a key visual, the campaign, according to Diana Salsa, VP - Marketing at Wonderful Pistachios, banks on the insight that “over the last six years, pistachio consumption in India has doubled, driven by a growing awareness of these nuts’ nutritional benefits.”

 

 

From artisanal pistachio cookies to pista nut butter - the nut has truly found a new place on the cool ranking. What protein did for Makhana, Dubai Chocolate to a great extent did for Pistachios. The trend opens up an entirely new market for both pistachios and food brands. There is no predicting the algorithm gods. Many amazing recipes do not go viral. But this one did. And if you were to ask me, there is a content marketing case study somewhere in here:

 

1. The product in itself has to be good enough. Dubai Chocolate in itself is an amazing product - it hits all the right elements of a dessert. One of the major reasons, pista flavour wasn’t as cool in India before was the quality of the products - pista ice creams, pista flavoured milk - they tasted like anything but pistachios. 

2. Figure out the right media budgets. Do not expect things to go viral organically all the time. Get in the right content creators, publishers, PR, events, movers and shakers and own the space. Let’s try to go back to the OG definition of viral marketing and not just the ‘social media seeding one’.  

3. Follow global consumption trends closely - see what it is that you can bring to your market. And how well can you get it here, how can you customise it? 

4. Last but not the least, the above 3 points apply to all industries and not just food. Korean Pants and cosmetics are a great case in point. 

 All in all, maybe it isn’t too late for Soan Papdi either. 

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