Modi with his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni, in Rome, Italy. (Photo:PTI)
New Delhi, May 21: Parle Products joined the online buzz after Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted a packet of Melody toffees to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during an interaction that quickly went viral on social media.
The gesture sparked a wave of "Melodi" memes online - a long-running Internet joke linking Meloni's name with the iconic candy brand amid the widely discussed camaraderie between the two leaders.
Capitalising on the moment, Parle Products shared the video on Instagram with the caption: "Sweetening relationships since 1983".
Parle Products Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Mayank Shah told CNBC-TV18 that the gesture was "a nice way of pushing Indian products and giving a global stage".
He added that the company expects "a lot of traction in domestic and international sales" following the viral moment.
Meanwhile, shares of Parle Industries saw frenzied buying on Wednesday, surging 5 percent to hit the upper circuit limit, thanks to a sudden investor interest in the stock after Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni posted a video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifting her a packet of Melody toffees.
The company's stock had a muted beginning to the trade but came into the limelight soon after Meloni shared a video in which she could be heard saying, "Prime Minister Modi brought as a gift, a very, very good toffee - Melody."
Investors wasted no time and flocked to the counter to buy the stock. Shares of the firm jumped 5 per cent to Rs 5.25 - the highest trading permissible limit for the day - on the BSE. On volume terms, 8.57 lakh shares of the firm were traded on the BSE during the day.
But, there is a catch!
Investors mistook Parle Industries for the maker of Melody toffees. Parle Products, the FMCG major, is the manufacturer of Melody toffees and is not listed on the stock exchanges.
- PTI