Healthy cereal maker Kellogg’s signs Rs 1.5 crore deal with ace badminton player Saina Nehwal

Globally renowned healthy breakfast cereal maker, Kellogg’s has signed ace badminton player Saina Nehwal to an endorsement deal pegged at close to Rs 1.5 crore. The two yearlong deal has made Nehwal, who is currently positioned at No. 2 inwomen's singles, as the highest paid female sports endorser in India, beating tennis player Sania Mirza and boxer Mary Kom.

A Kellogg’s India spokesperson confirmed the association with Nehwal and opts not to reveal further details of the deal. Even Darshan Machdar, Director at Spoment Ventures, the sports marketing firm representing Nehwal, was unavailable to comment.

Meanwhile, Vinit Karnik, National Director, Sports and Live Events, the sports marketing division of media buying group GroupM told mediapersons, "In the current scenario, Nehwal is the highest paid woman sportsperson in the country. Sania Mirza's endorsement fee used to be the highest till about 5 yearsback.

Talking about the last grand performances, the 25-year-old badminton player had topped the women's world ranking list in March this year.

Significantly, some talent managers believe that Nehwal has remained under-marketed when it comes to endorsement fee in comparison with the male sportsmen.

As per the industry executives, Indian Cricket Captain MS Dhoni is charging over Rs10 crore for brand endorsement while Cricketer Virat Kohli is taking Rs 5 to 6 crore. However, endorsement rates can vary to a large extent on the relationship the celebrity with the brand and the popularity of the sport says market experts.

Presently, apart from Kellogg’s, Nehwal is already endorsing Yonex, Bajaj Nomarks cream, Iodex pain reliever, Indian Overseas Bank and the Sahara group, which were signed for least20 per cent less.