When someone mentions the word “Yakult”, the first things that come to my mind are the following (in no particular order):
1) Family Kuarta o Kahon, that 90’s game show on Channel 9 hosted by Pepe Pimentel, who had Willie Revillame’s charisma but only a fraction of the hubris, and his (Pepe’s) Roleta ng Kapalaran;
2) Lactobacilli-Shirota strain, a type of microorganism created by a dude named Shirota, the active ingredient in all Yakult drinks, personified by little yellowish Smurf-like creatures whooping the bejesus out of “bad bacteria”;
3) Yakult ladies, those diligent vendors who I would have mistaken for Metro Aides if not for their icebox-full of Yakult products, which they sell near big establishments, particularly Nayong Pilipino and Manila Zoo; and
4) Gabe Mercado.
I don’t even know if it’s milk or yogurt or something entirely not dairy, but the fact that many people still drink – and enjoy – Yakult is a testament to its impact on the Filipino psyche. It advertises itself as a drink to improve the flow of digestion, but Pinoys have digested Yakult some other way: as baon for school or the office, as pasalubong, as a way to appease brats on the way to the church, or just a simple, everyday alternative to sodas, juices, and energy drinks.
The name Yakult is not just a brand anymore; it has come to embody the drink itself. Some copycats tried to get a piece of Yakult’s success by having more striking advertising machineries and other pautot (remember that blue genie-like moron, anyone?), but still Yakult held on. Maybe Yakult was more popular before than now, but its effects are definitely felt even today, not just in our stomachs, but in our cultural consciousness as well.
Everybody now: O-kay ka ba tiyan?
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