MxMIndia

Author: mxmadmin

  • Aims to double its revenues by 2026

    Crayons Advertising to launch Initial Public Offering (IPO)

    By Our Staff

     

    Crayons Advertising Limited agency is planning to launch an Initial Public Offering (IPO). The company has recently filed its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with NSE Emerge for the IPO. Upon listing, Crayons will be one of the first major homegrown advertising agency to go public.

     

    Said Kunal Lalani, Founder & Managing Director, Crayons Advertising: “In the past few years, we have consistently invested in our capabilities – comprising of people, processes, partners and performance. Today, we are aiming for an orbital shift, given our integrated proposition, the strong economic tailwinds for the advertising sector and sustained mandate flow in our digital and events verticals. We are raising funds to build further our digital capabilities, which will enable us to not only cater to the brands in Bharat, but also offer our new-age tech-led solutions to the world going forward.”

     

  • Conceptualized by Makani Creatives

    Lee Cooper launches campaign with influencers

    By our Staff

     

    Lee Copper in collaboration with top influencers launched a new campaign “Masters of Denims”. Conceptualized by Makani Creatives, this campaign aims to highlight Lee Cooper’s supremacy in the denim industry by showcasing interviews with celebrities and influencers in a candid chat about denims, fashion and everything in between.

     

    Jayesh Sali, Head Of Marketing, Fashion & Lifestyle, Reliance Retail said: “Being a global fashion brand with a British legacy, Lee Cooper wants to showcase its products to a broad audience, and what better way than to make use of the digital space where things are constantly evolving and good content is the key to driving numbers.”

     

    Aejaz Khan, CEO, Makani Creatives added: “At Makani, we always strive to be ambitious with our campaigns, authentic with our execution, and audacious with our goals.”

     

    Link and glimpse of the campaign below: https://www.instagram.com/p/CocFAEDIRi_/

     

  • Languages are brands in themselves, they are one of the biggest symbols of identity for mankind, writes Avik Chattopadhyay

    The identity of languages!

     

     

    By Avik Chattopadhyay

     

    Avik ChattopadhyayA few days back, the world celebrated the International Mother Language Day. Not that it would have mattered to most of us here in India, but in our neighbour Bangladesh it is a national holiday. In fact it’s the biggest national holiday there. Ask a man or woman on the streets of Dhaka, Barisal or Jessore what the nation’s biggest national holiday is and all of them unanimously will say ‘Shoheed Dibosh’ or ‘Martyrs’Day’. It is bigger than Liberation Day or any other occasion on the calendar of a Bangladeshi.

     

     

    Shaheed Minar, Dhaka

     

    It is the day when the nation pays homage to young students like Abdus Salaam, Rafiquddin Ahmed, Abul Barkat and Abdul Jabbar who laid down their lives at the legislative assembly to police firing for the sake of preserving Bengali as the main language of the then East Pakistan. That was on February 21, 1952. It was the first time in world history that a revolution was led on language. Since 1999, the UN celebrates the day to honour the “mother language”.

     

    To a lesser extent, the day is celebrated in West Bengal too as the language is the same. However, the fervour is much muted and frothy.

     

    Language is one of the biggest symbols of identity for mankind.

    For our language and ability to speak and express ourselves through words with their intonations are what make us “social” animals.

     

    Therefore languages are brands in themselves.

    Each language carries a certain personality quite distinct from others.

    Though our individual mother tongue is obviously above all others, to the general public, mention of a specific language elicits specific responses.

    One is lyrical. Another is guttural.

    One is scientific. Another is soft.

    One is pure. Another is an amalgamation.

    One is ancient. Another is modern.

    One is forgotten. Another is universal.

     

    The language one speaks also conjures up images of the speaker. And that leads to obvious stereotyping.

     

    In my last visit to Dhaka, I realised that the average Bangladeshi still carries this inner hate for Urdu as a language. While most of us regard it as one of the most lyrical, for them it is a symbol of imposition and colonialism. Therefore, they prefer to shun an otherwise beautiful language as the associations are negative. The same must be the case with colonies where their mother tongues were suppressed and sacrificed to impose the coloniser’s language. Russian was shunned by the ex-Soviet republics post dismantling of the USSR. So was the case with German after the end of the Second World War.

     

    Imposition of a certain language over a people or region that does not naturally speak it never works. While Pakistan tried with Urdu on the Bengali speaker, since Independence we too have been trying the same with Hindi on various regions and linguistic pockets. Interestingly, the first attempt was made way back in 1937 by C Rajagopalachari who wanted Hindi to be taught across all schools in Tamil Nadu [then Madras Presidency]. Post-Independence there was a concerted attempt to make Hindi the national language and switch from English to Hindi in 1965. Riots broke out in Madurai and spread like wildfire across the state leading to a loss of seventy lives. Finally in 1967 the then Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri had to officially assure the people of Tamil Nadu and the nation that English would continue to be the common operating language through the union while every regional language would be preserved. It is important to note that the Congress lost the 1967 election in the state and has never managed a foothold since. Later, attempts by the governments in power, whether through the New Education Policy of 1986 or the Home Ministry order of 2014 have all been met with staunch protests leading to the powers in Delhi retracing their steps.

     

    Periyar’s periodical Kudiyarasu of 03.09.1939 saying “Down with Hindi”

     

    Linguistic imperialism has seen its ugly head in various parts of India depending on the agenda of the political party in power, at the centre and in various states. Organisations like “Aamra Bangali” and “Bangla Pokkho” emerged in West Bengal to lead the anti-Hindi backlash since the 1980s. Bengali faced the brunt in Assam and Bihar. Urdu faces the same in Uttar Pradesh and many north Indian states. Inclusion of Hindi in the Bangalore Metro signage in 2017 and the celebration of Hindi Divas in 2019 saw huge anti-Hindi protests in the city. There has also been this long-standing attempt at imposing Kannada over all else in Karnataka.

     

    This perpetuating linguistic imperialism over centuries has seen some of the finest reactionary literary movements across the world as in India. Most of it has been underground to start with coming into the mainstream with the periodic overthrow of the imperialist powers, be they from outside or from within. The socio-religious stranglehold of Sanskrit led to the birth of Prakrit and the Brahmi script way back in 3rd century BCE as progressive reactionary developments that believed in assimilation and proliferation, rather than be restricted as the domain of an elite few.

     

    The longevity of a language depends on how it keeps evolving over time and incorporates from other languages, to appeal to more and more people, to be flexible in expression as well as representation. The more rigid a language is under the pretext of being pure and scientific, the lesser it is to be readily adopted by the larger population, Sanskrit and Latin being two glaring examples.

     

    Ghoom railway station sign in West Bengal; Southall railway station sign in West London

     

    A train journey is the best way to see new languages crop up in various parts of the country with Hindi and English being the common features. The station signage is possibly one of the best symbols of inclusion and integration. Across West Bengal and Jharkhand, the railway stations in the Santhal areas carry signage in the local Ol-Chiki script too!

     

    Thriving languages are about co-habitation and cross-fertilization. The more languages a society or nation accepts, the more habitable it becomes. Trying to impose a uniform language overall will naturally see reactionary movements as it is an attempt to wipe out a certain identity and culture. And it leads to situations where a certain person who speaks a language as beautiful as Bengali refuses to accept another as beautiful as in Urdu.

     

    But then I guess if the imposition had not been tried, the reactionary movement would never have happened and the importance of the “mother language” would have never been understood!

     

    “Urdu hai jis ka naam hamin jaante hain ‘daagh’

    Hindustan mein dhoom hamari zabaan ki hai!”

    -Dagh Dehlvi

     

  • Onboards Tiger Shroff

    Coca-Cola Zero Sugar is back with another campaign

    By Our Staff

     

    Coca-Cola Zero Sugar is back with its new campaign ‘Best Taste Ever?’ with continued efforts to increase no-and low-calorie beverage options. The brand has associated with Tiger Shroff  to further aid the brand in establishing resonance with the youth and millennials in India.

     

    Commenting on the launch of the new campaign, Kaushik Prasad, Director, Marketing, Coca-Cola India said: “We are excited to offer Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, our best offering yet that is closest to the original taste of Coca-Cola with no calories. We want to offer choice so consumers can enjoy the great taste of Coca-Cola without the sugar. For many people, it’s surprising to hear that a zero sugar variant of Coke actually exists, that tastes like the real thing! Well, you will have to try it yourself to find out.”

     

    Sukesh Nayak, Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy India added: “When we told people, it’s zero sugar but has the same great original taste, the reaction we got was, “Really?”. So, we built the whole idea for Coke Zero on this great surprise. It was super fun to collaborate with Tiger to bring this fun idea to life. We will see way more things on this idea in the near future, so stay glued to the great taste, literally.”

    Campaign link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTFsWPTwddo

     

  • Seven years after the launch of Accessible India campaign, the country’s disabled population struggles to access public spaces, writes Shruti Pushkarna

    Shruti Pushkarna: Amrit Udyan: A common name ensures no access to the common (wo)man

    By Shruti Pushkarna

     

    Shruti PushkarnaAs I sat down to write this piece after a gap of nearly a month, I sifted through several topics and ideas that struck in the past few weeks. But a recent experience was freshest in the mind, also because it goes against all the notions of inclusion and diversity that I celebrated in my last column.

     

    Last Sunday, I headed out to enjoy the last of the February winter weekends. And if you are in the Capital, what better place to catch the spring blooms than the Mughal Gardens. Oh wait, I meant Amrit Udyan, the all-new name of the iconic and must-visit tourist destination.

     

    The only way I imagined recounting my visit was to friends and family, and of course Instagram stories of floral beauties. Neither happened. Instead it turned out to be an unexpectedly distasteful experience, yet again highlighting the gaps in access and the utter disregard for anyone with a limitation. Be it the elderly, persons with disabilities or just anyone who appreciates some personal space!

     

    When I booked the entry pass online, I had to choose from various hourly slots which sort of indicated that the entry and exit count was being controlled and monitored. But when I reached the drop off point, the entry gate was hidden behind humongous hordes. Pushing and pulling through the crowds, I somehow managed to make it to the security check, from where I was pointed into another direction to put my purse through an x-ray machine.

     

    Standing in the lines, figuring out where to go, how and where to place my bag and then reclaim it, I wondered how would a wheelchair or a white cane user navigate through this mess. One part of that was quickly answered as I got in line behind a girl in a wheelchair. I saw the caregiver struggling to push her through the damaged pathways, equally hazardous for someone prone to ankle injuries, senior citizens or children.

     

    The worst part, there was no room to walk, let alone breathe and enjoy nature. Amid the unruly herds obtrusively pushing forward to catch a glimpse of the blossoming ranunculus or suddenly halting to capture selfies, my soulful Sunday soliloquy turned into a cantankerous cacophony.

     

    As I held my elbows up to assert personal space, I pictured a person with vision impairment unable to use the white cane to her advantage. Clearly, there was no consideration for a blind person tapping and navigating their way around. If, for once, anyone stopped to help or make room for another, the security guards upped the decibel levels of their incessant shouting, “chalte rahiye”, meaning “keep walking”.

     

    There was only one entry and exit point. There was only one path for everyone to walk on. There was no resting spot or benches to catch one’s breath. There was no chance to sit in peace to take in the botanic view. And of course, in all this, there was no visible means of handling a medical emergency. I thought hard as to what I would do if the person next to me had an asthma attack or fainted. I wouldn’t be able to get him or her to the emergency shed, which by the way, was (un)strategically housed near the exit gate.

     

    How can I forget the steep ramps and the dangerous footpaths? In several places in the pathway, I noticed a sudden drop without warning. Ramps placed next to the stairs had no secure sides, making it dangerously adventurous for a wheelchair user. Plus, they were populated by the general public, mindless of its actual utility.

     

    The last time I spotted the girl in the wheelchair, she was confused on how to enter the Bonsai garden, flooded with people. And this was just the beginning of the nightmare that lay ahead. Beyond this point, she was not to be seen. I assumed she turned around and left when there was still a way out.

     

    Carrying on with my treacherous trek to the exit point, desperate to find my ‘Do Gaj ki doori’, I also encountered littered, wet patches, creating a unique image of Amrit Udyan in my head. The one that will keep me away from explorations for a while.

     

    The newly christened horticultural heaven open to the Indian public for a limited two-month period, is out of bounds for so many sections of the population. How does prefixing Amrit ensure grandeur and joy? How does a citizen take delight in Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, when they are excluded from public arenas? Are the access auditors of Sugamya Bharat Abhiyaan paying no heed?

     

    So why are we publishing this column on an A&M site? Well, we strongly feel that the media can dramatically transform the world of persons with disabilities. And this series can help bring forth issues that the media must champion to create a truly inclusive and accessible India. To write this column, we invited Shruti Pushkarna, a former journalist who now works as Director, EnAble India where she heads North India operations as well as media and communications outreach. Shruti writes for MxMIndia every other Thursday. Her views here are personal. To access the archives of all her 70-odd columns, please visit: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/ columns/shruti-pushkarna/

     

  • To ensure that only the best in the region are awarded

    Anupriya Acharya & Dennis Perez appointed Heads of Jury for APAC Effies

    By Our Staff

     

    Effie Asia Pacific announces Anupriya Acharya, South Asia CEO of Publicis Groupe, and Dennis Perez, Digital Marketing, Media and Commerce Lead of Unilever as the first two Heads of Jury for the APAC Effie Awards 2023. Both familiar faces at the judging table, they will continue to ensure that only the best in the region will be recognised for their efforts.

     

    Ranked among Fortune India’s Top 50 “Most Powerful Women in Business” consecutively in 2018 and 2019, and honoured by Forbes India as a ‘W-Power’ Trailblazer in 2018, Anupriya is an eminent marketing and advertising professional with 28 years of experience under her belt. Anupriya joined Publicis Groupe in 2013, and previously held senior leadership positions with WPP in India and Aegis Media Singapore. She has served as a jury member on several key media industry awards in the region, including the APAC Effie Awards where she was a Head of Jury in 2020.

     

    She is also actively involved in the industry and until recently was the President of the Advertising Agencies Association of India for the terms 2020-2022. She is also on the Board of other industry bodies like BARC, ASCI, and MMA, apart from being an Independent Director on the Board of DB Corp, the largest newspaper group in India.

     

    On her appointment, Anupriya said: “It’s a great honour to be a Head of Jury for the APAC Effie Awards 2023. The APAC Effies is the gold standard for brand ideas that can withstand the test of the market and bring in true business results. Advertising is undergoing a massive shift; brands are reinventing how they engage with consumers – be it in their authenticity or the way they use technology. The APAC region has some of the best use cases of this change and I look forward to seeing some of this exciting work.”

     

    Dennis is the Digital Marketing, Media and Commerce Lead for Unilever Beauty and Wellbeing Southeast Asia, where he heads the creation and execution of integrated digital and media strategies in the region. He is also steering the digital transformation agenda in Unilever by developing next generation marketing and commerce practices in the beauty category through data driven marketing, content partnerships, influencer marketing, beauty technology, and advanced analytics.

     

    Dennis is also the Country Media Head of Unilever Philippines. Whilst enjoying media and marketing as a profession, Dennis is also a licensed Chemical Engineer. Thus, he believes in building brands with magic and logic, math and meaning.

     

    On his appointment, Dennis said, “As marketing goes into a continuous state of flux, maximising effectiveness means anchoring unmissable creativity to a good and solid strategy. The APAC Effies is a good reminder that creativity starts way before the craft begins. I’m excited to head this year’s jury in celebrating work that embraced bolder bets from the beginning of strategy creation to deliver amazing results at the end. Together with the jury, I’m looking forward to pushing the edges of what creativity means for the industry – with strategy and effectiveness pinning the spectrum of marketing and brand communication.”

     

    Globally recognised as the gold standard in marketing effectiveness excellence by clients and agencies, the APAC Effie Awards continue to uphold this standard by awarding only the best campaigns in the Asia Pacific region.

     

    The first group of jurors have been announced at https://apaceffie.com/competition/2023-jury, and the remaining Heads of Jury will be revealed in the coming weeks. To access the latest competition updates, visit www.apaceffie.com.

     

  • To lead newly created content division

    Acko Tech appoints journalist Siddharth Vinayak Patankar as CCO

    By Our Staff

     

    Acko Tech announced the appointment of journalist and anchor Siddharth Vinayak Patankar as its Editor-in-Chief and Chief Creative Officer.

     

    As Chief Creative Officer, Patankar will lead Acko Tech’s newly created content division and create an end-to-end content platform for the wider audience. He will be responsible for the overall content strategy to build brand love to connect with the audience through engaging and educative content. The new content division’s first play will be in the automobile and technology spaces, where Siddharth will also be Editor-in-Chief.

     

    Said Varun Dua, Founder of ACKO: “We are thrilled to have Siddharth join our team. His extensive background in crafting strategic content platforms, in-depth understanding of the auto industry, and comprehension of consumer behavior and expectations make him a valuable asset to our team. With Siddharth’s leadership, we are confident in our ability to develop a robust content strategy that will enable us to create engaging and educational content across various platforms and formats.”

     

  • Aims to further foster the enthusiasm and support for WPL

    Tata Group to sponsor Women’s Premier League

    By Our Staff

     

    Tata Capital, the financial services arm of the Tata Group, has announced that they would join in the title sponsorship of the upcoming Women’s Premier League (WPL) for which Tata Group is the Title Sponsor and Tata Motors would be another brand to join. The WPL is being sponsored by the Tata Group for a period of 5 seasons up to 2027. The inaugural edition of the Tata WPL is scheduled to take place between March 4th and March 26th 2023

     

    This sponsorship aims to further foster the enthusiasm and immense support that Indians have shown towards our Women’s Cricket Team.

     

    Speaking on the partnership Rajiv Sabharwal, Managing Director and CEO, Tata Capital said, “We are delighted to be associated with the Women’s Premier League. Women’s sports are becoming increasingly popular in India, and we feel this will only grow with time. We hope that our partnership with BCCI for WPL will help provide the opportunity to promote women’s cricket by continuing to attract the best talent. We also believe that such initiatives will help build a team of cricketing champions.”

     

  • An online certification program for Advertisers, Marketers and Businesses

    ShareChat introduces Learning Hub

    By Our Staff

     

    ShareChat, multilingual social media platform, has launched ShareChat Learning Hub, a certification program specially designed for marketers, advertisers and brands. The idea behind launching this free-of-cost, self-paced learning program is to enable brands to leverage ShareChat & Moj’s network of more than 400 million Monthly Active Users (MAUs) to reach an ‘uncharted’ Bharat and young India (Gen Z & millennials) audiences and create high-performing campaigns that drive great results. It also aims to highlight the immense potential of short-form videos to drive campaign messaging in a differentiated manner for young India.

     

    Commenting on the launch of the program, Udit Sharma, Chief Revenue Officer, ShareChat & Moj said: “As the preferred content destination for Bharat, we understand the pulse of diverse language-first Indian users and young India. ShareChat Learning Hub is a step towards enabling brands, advertisers and marketers to deploy our comprehensive ad formats and content innovations that have been designed keeping in mind the media consumption behaviour of Bharat and Gen-Z audiences on ShareChat and Moj.”

     

  • Like our knowledge of the environment, our ideas about geology appear to be non-existent. Better science journalism in India has been the need of the hour for ages, writes Ranjona Banerji

    Ranjona Banerji: Downside of living in a small state

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    Ranjona BanerjiA group of women’s organisations have produced an indepth fact-finding report into the Ankita Bhandari case.

    With all that happens in this country, we have largely forgotten the Ankita Bhandari case, even with Uttarakhand.

    To recap, a young woman, Ankita Bhandari, 19, who worked as a receptionist at a resort, was reported missing by her father. Her body was found six days later. Uttarakhand does not have a proper policing system in its non-city areas. Thus the revenue or patwari police with no crime investigation experience was in charge.

    The family alleged that the police was further compromised by the fact that the resort was owned by BJP politician Vinod Arya’s son, Pulkit Arya. Ankita’s friends say she was being forced by the resort owner to provide “extra” services for VIP guests which she refused to do. She vanished soon after she complained to a friend about pressures put on her. A local BJP politician, Renu Bisht, muddied the investigation further by bulldozing part of the resort, destroying vital evidence.

    All this happened in September 2022.

    Almost six months later, Ankita is out of the national headlines.

    The fact-finding report says:

    “The collapse of the criminal justice system and the freedom to destroy evidence is also clearly visible in this case. Precious evidence, including the crime scene, was destroyed on the night of September 23, under the leadership of ruling BJP MLA Renu Bisht, who also owns a resort in the area. The negligence and maliciousness of the police is visible in this. Why was the crime scene not sealed by the police? Why was no action taken against Bisht for destroying evidence? Who allowed her to run the government bulldozer on the resort?”

     

    As happens all too often in such cases, Ankita’s father was fobbed off by various police stations, made to run about to even get a missing persons’ report filed. Ankita’s body was cremated by the police, as in the Hathras rape and murder victim’s case. Ankita’s mother was not even allowed to see her daughter’s face for the last time.

     

    https://www.newsclick.in/Ankita-Bhandari-Murder-Case-Fact-Finding-Report-Questions-Uttarakhand-Admin-Role

     

    https://thewire.in/rights/uttarkahand-fact-finding-team-police-probe-ankita-bhandari

     

    Womens’ organisations say they are willing to fight for justice to the end. While the accused have been arrested, unless there is constant media and social attention on this case, we all know that it will vanish into the archives of time and be forgotten. There are too many powerful people involved, even if the Aryas have been removed from the BJP. The Uttarakhand High Court refused the family’s plea for the CBI to take the case, thus it remains with the state.

    Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Dhami has initiated a move to remove the revenue police system. But apparently, fear of protests from Ankita’s family and friends around his house, the road has been blocked for all citizens. So much for a functioning democracy.

     

    Over and again one sees the downside of living in a small state on the Indian borders. The Ankita Bhandari case has been forgotten, the sinking of Joshimath has also practically been forgotten. Every day more cracks appear in roads, home and hillsides.

     

    https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/joshimath-cracks-are-up-to-half-km-long-2-feet-wide-survey/articleshow/98132447.cms

     

    In spite of Joshimath’s proximity to Badrinath, bookings for the Char Dham Yatra have begun in earnest. These are people from all over India so perhaps their presence will draw attention to the massive problems facing Uttarakhand’s natural resources and heritage.

     

    https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/char-dham-yatra-to-begin-on-april-22-amid-joshimath-fears/articleshow/98051146.cms

     

    Helicopter services will also begin and they carry their own dangers at such high altitudes on fragile terrain.

    https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/many-deaths-near-misses-in-turbulent-skies-over-kedarnath/articleshow/94952830.cms

     

    I received a few calls this week from worried friends about a prediction of a massive earthquake in Uttarakhand.

    https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/turkey-magnitude-quake-could-hit-uttarakhand-expert/articleshow/98104381.cms?from=mdr

    While scare-mongering is dangerous, all experts have agreed for years now that a massive earthquake is likely in Uttarakhand, sooner rather than later. How much have you ever heard about that?

    Like our knowledge of the environment, our ideas about geology appear to be non-existent. Better science journalism in India has been the need of the hour for ages.

    I’ll leave it there for now.

     

    Ranjona Banerji is a senior journalist and commentator. She writes on MxMIndia on Tuesdays and Fridays. Her views here are personal

     

  • Another excellent response to what could've been a delicate question. Presenting Dr Bhaskar Das in the February 23 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

    Das ka Dum with Dr Bhaskar Das | Over a year, P&G’s USA-based fabric care brands saved roughly $65 million in adspends by bringing media planning & buying inhouse, it’s CFO said. Should our media agency captains be sweating?

    Bhaskar DasAnother excellent response to what could’ve been a delicate question. Presenting Dr Bhaskar Das in the February 23 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

     

    If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

     

    Q. Over the course of a year, P&G’s USA-based fabric care brands saved roughly $65 million in adspends by bringing media planning and buying inhouse, it’s CFO said. Should our media agency captains be sweating?

     

    A. The debate on merits of an in-house media buying agency has been going on for quite some time. An inhouse or outsourced model has its own merits and demerits. I don’t want to elaborate on the subject, but the jury is out about any definitive answer on the subject.

     

    I think you’ll see more situations where the Marketing Head would prefer a hybrid of nimble agencies to complement their in-house capabilities (eg social media, influencer marketing, real-time data tracking etc ) with a traditional agency of record (AOR) model. I know one size doesn’t always fit all organisations. Many CMOs like to get their hands dirty and break down the walls between various functions and manage the various aspects of marketing operations in a symbiotic way. There are other CMOs who feel an outside-in perspective from an agency with all their capabilities across industry categories could be a useful learning experience for managing the function. Hence, there is no best way to approach a subject just because one organisation has been following a practice. Every corporation has to find what works best for them, given the operating challenges.

     

  • Cricket is literally the only marquee media category India has today, writes Shailesh Kapoor

    The Myth called ‘Too Much Cricket’

     

     

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    Shailesh KapoorThose of my vintage often lament that ‘These days, there’s too much cricket happening all the time’. Factually, this is indeed true. The Indian national team played about 75 days of international cricket in 2022. Add the IPL to it, and they were on field for almost 100 days in the year. And this was a year whose early part was impacted by the pandemic.

     

    The average number of Test matches played by India was seven per year in the 90s. It went up to 10 per year in the decade 2000-2009, and has since then averaged at 13 per year, excluding the pandemic-impacted months. Not all Test matches last the full distance, or the number of playing days would be even higher. But a typical Indian cricketer is on tour for almost 150 days in a year, not counting the training camps that precede these tours or home series.

     

    From a viewer perspective, there is all of this, plus key non-India matches, like those in a World Cup, to watch. Women’s cricket is on the rise too, and WPL is round the corner. It means potentially about 150 days of relevant cricket being telecast live every year. And this does not include non-India bilateral series, like the Ashes.

     

    I don’t know another sport that has so much going on round the year. Yet, there is no sign of cricket fatigue. Viewership numbers have not dropped in recent years, and a new generation of young Indians seem to have taken to T20 cricket, especially IPL, quite well. With no other sport on the ascendancy, cricket is set to dominate the Indian media landscape for another decade at least.

     

    It’s no secret, though, that cricket is not the most profitable investment for linear television or streaming broadcasters. The licensing rates keep going up every year, and yet, the strategic power the sport wields in India is significant enough to keep the broadcasters and the streamers interested.

     

    We have been a single-sport country for long. But cricket has gone on to take an even more prestigious position: It is literally the only marquee media category India has today. No national GEC show (fiction or reality) or movie airing can match the impact of good cricket series, or a key event like a tournament knockout game. Everything else is getting increasingly fragmented, even as viewership continues to consolidate around cricket. Even election coverage is losing steam in recent years, except a short block of 4-6 hours on result days.

     

    Interestingly, there is very little ancillary programming around cricket that has managed to cut through. Live cricket continues to grow in its appeal, but packaged content is largely limited to free platforms like YouTube. The communal impact of live cricket, which is at the heart of its popularity in India, is difficult to replicate in cricket game shows, chat shows or analysis. Broadcasters have tried this for years, but unsuccessfully. These properties now exist only because some sponsors are willing to pay to be on them, coming as they do at lesser price points than the live game.

     

    With large-scale technology-led changes and changes in audience behaviour, all else in the Indian media landscape will evolve over the coming decade. But the sport of cricket will stand tall, invincible.