Brand: X-tra
Client: Sunshine Holdings
Agency: DC Group
In today’s attention economy, virality isn’t a fluke it’s a formula. And the X-tra lozenge brand just cracked it wide open.
The Setup: A Meme, a Voice, and a “Problem”
It all started with something harmless relatable, even. A meme. Mihindu Ariyarathne, a beloved Sri Lankan artist known for his unique and emotionally charged voice, found himself the subject of a viral joke. The meme compared his “scratchy voice” to someone needing a lozenge.
And that lozenge? It happened to be X-tra.
But instead of brushing it off, Mihindu responded with a serious-toned video.
He looked straight into the camera, hinting at legal action, calling out the brand for using his voice without permission, and criticizing their “irresponsibility” in the name of marketing. His followers rallied behind him. Tension flared. Comments exploded. Brands watched quietly. Everyone else? They leaned in closer.
The Twist: When Anger Becomes a Jingle
Just when the conversation reached a boiling point, Mihindu flipped the narrative.
In a follow-up video, he declared, “I’ll send a gift to X-tra… but in an angry mood.”
What came next no one saw coming.
X-tra publicly responded with an “apology.” Not the dry, corporate kind but a humorous, tongue-in-cheek acknowledgement of the chaos. And then came the drop a full-blown commercial music video starring Mihindu himself, turning that “scratchy voice” insult into a sonic branding masterstroke.
A lozenge jingle had never sounded this iconic.
Behind the Curtain: Trendjacking with Precision
This wasn’t a PR crisis. It was orchestrated theatre crafted, timed, and executed with surgical precision by DC Group, the agency behind the stunt.
For context, X-tra entered a market long dominated by a household-name lozenge brand. Generations had grown up on the competitor. It had become the default. So how do you shake that dominance?
You don’t whisper.
You don’t follow.
You trendjack.
The strategy was rooted in agile marketing react fast, create faster, and ride the wave of what’s happening right now. In this case: a meme, a moment, and a massive following.
“We didn’t just want to advertise,” the agency notes, “We wanted to enter culture. That meant owning a conversation, even if it meant being at the center of controversy for a greater payoff.”
And that payoff? It came in views, engagement, shares, stitches, and duets. TikTok. Instagram. Facebook. Twitter. The brand was suddenly everywhere. From fan-made remixes of the jingle to parody videos and comment threads debating “Was this real?” everyone had an opinion. And more importantly, everyone had watched.
THE HILIGHT: More Than a Campaign, It Was a Movement
At its core, this was a masterclass in:
Storytelling – A meme to a misunderstanding to a music drop
Timing – Knowing exactly when to reveal the plot twist
Collaboration – Turning a celebrity “attack” into a celebrity endorsement
Boldness – Not just reacting to trends, but creating them
This wasn’t about a lozenge. It was about cultural imprint. X-tra showed Sri Lanka that even in a cluttered, commoditized category like lozenges, you can win hearts, dominate timelines, and make a statement—if you’re brave enough to blend controversy with creativity.
In a landscape where brands are afraid to take risks, X-tra and DC Group leaned into one—and emerged louder, fresher, and stickier than any lozenge ad in recent memory.
To everyone watching: this wasn’t a campaign.
It was a blueprint.
