MxMIndia

Category: BLOGS

  • In Freaking News, Ranjona Banerji reviews the fare on primetime news and the morning papers

    R.I.P, Dev Saab

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    The death of Dev Anand, not unnaturally, took up most of Sunday’s news and a good proportion of Monday’s newspapers. To the more maudlin amongst us, it seems that 2011 has stolen many of our “icons” (The cynical might argue that death is inevitable). But when it comes to Dev Anand, no amount of mourning is enough and no encomium over the top. This is a loss of an amazing spirit and an irrepressible zest for life. In this ego-ridden world, Anand refused to rest on his past laurels and kept looking ahead to his new ventures. He did not seem fazed – or if he was he did not let them daunt him – by his many failures in the last 20 years. He just kept on. The Times of India most appropriately headlined their lead, ‘India’s Youngest Star Dies at 88’.

     

    From being one of the triumvirate who ruled Hindi cinema in the 1950s,60s and even the 70s and beyond, to a whimsical director who refused to be defeated either by age or opinion, Dev Anand carried the flag of both the golden age as well as the future.

     

    The fact is that Anand was criticised through the later part of his life – albeit affectionately – and he took it all in his stride. In death, then, we can only look back on a glorious life.

     

    **

     

    Most called Anand’s death ‘end of an era’, which indeed it does signify. The international media has picked it up as well and not just because Anand died in London. Bollywood and India’s reach is now well known. But Anand also made a name for himself a long time ago with Guide. Renowned novelist Pearl Buck adapted RK Narayan’s novel for the 1956 English version of the movie. The Hindustan Times, harking back to one of Dev Anand’s seminal films, headlined their second lead, ‘Indian cinema loses its ‘Guide’. Though one is not sure whether Anand would have been happy with being called a guide; perhaps he saw himself more as a trailblazer! (It is another matter that the making and final versions of Guide, gave Narayan close to a nervous breakdown!)

     

    **

     

    The newspapers have been full of tributes and over the next weeks we are bound to see more, from those who know him well, those who met him only once, the various people he introduced to cinema and his millions of fans.

     

    **

     

    Based on a conversation on Twitter and my own observation, it appears that reporters have so much to thank social media and micro-blogging for. The tedious task of calling people for reactions to some event has now been replaced by logging on to twitter and taking down comments. So much easier than conventional calls and with no chance of the person being “misquoted”?

     

    (Unless of course you quote Suhel Seth whose twitter account is apparently hacked into at regular intervals!)

  • The humour is weak and the novelty value of a rusk biscuit, the 'crunchy and juicy' promise, gets lost somewhere in, well, outer space.

    Debrief: Rusky business

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    Britannia claims their new biscuit called Britannia Rusk is crunchy and juicy. And it’s difficult to find such a taste anywhere in the world. And so, the creative takes you out of the world. Into a spaceship.

     

    In the TVC, a young astronaut takes a tea break and munches on Britannia Rusk. Suddenly, literally out of the blue, his entire family arrives to share the biscuits. Mom, dad, granny, even the kaamwaali bai. The message: Britannia Rusk brings the family together with its sensational taste.

     

    While I like the unusual setting of a spaceship, which will help the commercial get noticed, there are two factors that weaken the communication. Even as family bonding is demonstrated, the novelty value of a rusk biscuit, the ‘crunchy and juicy’ promise, gets lost somewhere in, well, outer space. Since rusk is a relatively new breed of biscuits out here, the initial advertising ought to have focused on product attributes rather than lifestyle. Secondly, the humour is weak. The maid’s appearance will bring a little smile, but that’s about it.

     

    All said, the TVC will arouse a little curiosity but may not be effective beyond that.

     

    Rating: (On a scale of 1 to 5): 2. The strategy needs a rethink.

  • The 'on-hold' status of FDI in multi-brand retail sends the message that India is a country of uncertain climate and even shakier governance.

    Hard Knocks: Crossed signals over FDI

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    I often wonder why international corporates even want to invest in a messy country like India. Why do they wish to take on all the headaches of operating inside such a chaotic nation. The answer, I suppose, is the market saturation in their own lands, and a raging desire to capitalize on the booming spending populace of this third world nation. Which makes the suits risk an entry into this snake pit.

     

    Well, all I can say is that these companies are either gutsy or desperate or both. If I was an international investor, I would quietly park my money in China. Or even Vietnam and Indonesia. And fly over India. Look at all the tamasha that just happened over the issue of FDI in multi-brand retail. And now it’s been put on ‘hold’… an euphemistic way of saying that the government chickened out of the deal. Here are the three messages we just sent to the global businessmen:

     

    1> The Indian PM is lamer than a lame duck. He has the vision, but lacks the ability, wherewithal and support to push new projects through. That, not just his rivals and allies, even his own party men can upset his plans at any time.

    2> Even if the FDI in retail bill gets passed, which is now a very remote possibility (even Baba Ram Dev doesn’t like it!), it’s left to the various states to accept or reject it. So you could be present in Delhi and Mumbai but missing in Bangalore, Kolkata and Chennai. And when the state government changes, there’s no surety the new government won’t kick you out of the city. So there’s never any hope of stability.

    3> Goons of various political parties are always ready for some action on the streets. So to pacify a particular vote bank segment, there’s always a chance that they will strike your super expensive store. Shattered glass panes, damaged wares and bruised business could be just a stone’s throw away.

     

    Yes, India is a hot destination for dhandha. But only for the steely, hardy, brave risk-takers.

     

    ***

     

    PS: Quite liked the rich tributes various TV channels paid to Devsaab immediately on the news of his death. The best package was put out by Times Now (pretty much non-stop coverage) and Aaj Tak (the only channel that told us some untold Dev Anand tales). The only disappointment came from NDTV. On a day like that, when the whole nation was humming Dev’s classics, they ran an hour-long, maha-boring prime time show on parliament adjournments. From the sublime to the ridiculous.

  • Indian parents in general do not bother to teach good manners to their kids, and this is amply demonstrated by the little ones at public places.

    Debrief: Thank you for the lesson

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    Tata AIG Life Insurance has released a new TVC to hawk their children’s ‘Gyankosh’ insurance plan, and I totally like this one. Instead of promising that our children’s future will be safe with Tata AIG Life, and that they’ll grow up to become doctors and engineers, the focus is on inculcating the right values in the kids.

     

    The commercial features a young family at the dining table. When the servant arrives to serve food to the kid, the dad demands that he must say thank you to the house help. The spoilt lad refuses, but the dad puts his foot down. Finally, after much prodding, the kid says thanks to the servant and learns a lesson he’ll hopefully never forget in his life. The VO explains that parents must focus on the right upbringing of their children and Tata AIG Life will worry about their future.

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”250″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9Hc7JcNLuc[/youtube]

    Good one. Very refreshing and unexpected communication. And very relevant for our times. Because Indian parents in general do not bother to teach good manners to their kids, and this is amply demonstrated by the little ones at public places.

     

    In addition the message emphasises the company’s core brand values. I also like the thoughtful execution… specially the part where the mother does not interfere when the dad is teaching his son a lesson. Wonder if all moms would do that in desi households.

     

    Rating: (On a scale of 1 to 5): 4. Also works nicely as a public service advert.

  • Gouri Dange on how to eat canapes and other etiquette tips for journos and non-journos at book launches by non-page3 writers.

    Gouri Dange: Rules for book launch attendees

     

    By Gouri Dange

     

    Rules of Engagement – a small checklist, mainly for journos attending book launches of the non-page3 kind.

     

    First, when we send you the invitation, don’t immediately mail back querulously questioning a) the venue that we have chosen/ are stuck with b) the date that we have arrived at after much intricate planning c) the choice of personality who has agreed to read from and release the book. Of course it could have been at a better place, better time, better season, with a celeb you particularly like… and we’re sorry for disappointing you on all scores, but we don’t conjure up book launches by twirling a tinsel wand, we put them together after mental, physical, social and financial contortions of the most fantastic kind.

     

    We writers, forced to be our own marketers and PR persons, are constantly trying to find the fine line between sending you the invite well in advance (so that you can plan to come or send an underling), but not sending it so early that you will forget about it. So do not expect us to play secretary to you. Do have the grace to mark the day on your own, in your own calendar/similar device.

     

    Another constant see-saw that we are trying to work is this: We writers-in-launch-mode realise that your Blackberry gags at attachments, so our anxiously designed elaborate e-invitations end up irritating you. This is why we put the gist – place, date, time – in the body copy of the text. Surely that is considerate enough? So desist from writing to us in an offhand way from your wretched devices instructing us to put it all on SMS format for you. Wish we could pander to your every whim about what format you would like the invitation in, but deal with it, whatever format we send you.

     

    If you really do intend coming to the event, stop groaning about traffic and distances. Keep the address with you – either on your phone or scribbled on your palm (the body part or the device), or on paper or in your head. Do not, and this bears repetition, do not call the writer half an hour before (or five minutes, even) the event itself, and ask for directions. And really, this is just not the time to provide a fresh insight into how the venue and day is all wrong and that parking is such a b***h in your city, and all that jazz. We writers do not personally arrange for your city roads to be so lousy.

     

    Once the event begins, it would be nice if you would switch off your phone, and also not keep a fake engaged look on your face while you jab SMSes on your keypad. Really, we don’t want just your bodies there, we want your minds, such as they are, present and participating.

     

    Some of you also tend to ask questions in the interactive part of the reading/launch, that are only a verbal vehicle to tell people who you are and how you’re so good at what you do. Stop. Just stop. Go do it somewhere else.

     

    Remember, it’s about the book. So questions about finances, advances, and other intricacies of the book business can perhaps be asked of us on our email ids, but certainly not at the book launch. You are more than welcome to ask and tell about what you liked or didn’t like about the book. But asking after the health of my wealth? No.

     

    When it is time to buy your copy and get it signed from the writer, do not leak out of the door empty-handed. Maybe you don’t want to wait in line for a signed copy and that’s fine. But do buy a copy. Oh well…what am I thinking…you’re the Press, you don’t buy.

     

    At launches where there are canapés served, please do not eat the nice part and leave the toast behind on the platter. (This is a well-documented occurrence.) This causes the waiters to walk about with just the dry toast pieces on a platter, and less canny guests end up having to eat those; they then become moody and sulky and tend to leave without buying any books.

     

    And this one is for non-journo attendees: Do not walk up to us writers after the launch and ask things like “But where’s the media? No media?” This may come as a shock to you, but a) journos don’t show up for most launches – their story is usually that ‘evenings are hellish at the office’ b) you may have not read them, but we do have reviews and interviews out there; it’s just that you may not see a real live journalist at our readings/launches c) it really is more important for a book to have actual readers present than the media, whatever anyone tells you.

     

    Lastly, journos, non-journos, listen up: If you did not attend our reading/launch, do not appear on Gmail chat or SMS two days after the event saying ‘How did your thing go? It was when?’ The answer doesn’t really matter to you, and we both know it. Our fingers can tap out only that many things in one lifetime, and telling you ‘the launch was awesome’ or ‘missed you there’ or some such thing is a waste of taps, which we want to save for our actual writing.

     

    Naming no Names is the mid-week column where novelist, columnist and counsellor Gouri Dange presents her tongue-in-cheek view of our world.

  • Pradyuman Maheshwari on the mess at Mid-Day, Minister Sibal's plans to screen the Net, credible awards and the Mediaah! take on who's a worthy Impact Person of the Year

    Mediaah!: Oh MiD-Day, my MiD-Day!

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    Its paid content strategy is rubbish, but it’s a great newspaper. It’s a Mumbai institution, just as The Times of India is (see disclosure below). Sadly, it flopped miserably in Delhi and Bengaluru (and Pune) in the past and I wasn’t surprised to learn that the paper was shutting shop in the two metros. Pune stays, but it’s serviced totally by Mumbai, save the local reporting talent.

     

    When Jagran bought Midday Multimedia last year, it was evident that the group was interested in the flagship Mumbai edition, Inquilab and Gujarati Mid-Day. In fact, Inquilab fitted the gameplan perfectly to dominate UP.

     

    While we mediapersons sermonise endlessly about how corporates should deal with retrenchment, we are awful in handling such situations in our own backyard. The mail from the CEO was very casual and while he may have thought it was cool, there are better ways to do effect a closure.

     

    Do it face-to-face. Personally visit one of the centres and request your editor who was in Bengaluru to interview the Apple co-founder to stay back and break the bad news.

     

    Those in power must never forget that the same fate could strike them.

     

    Now what? The team in Delhi is up in arms. Over social networks they say that they were being asked to voluntarily resign and have heard that bouncers will stop them from entering the office today. I don’t know what’s the state in Bengaluru, but some protestors asked MxMIndia to report on the matter. We haven’t done a story on the issue, because it was too late to get a comment from the Mid-Day bosses.

     

    From what I know of the Jagran management, the Guptas are cool and considerate. They are open to reason, and I’m sure they’ll correct the wrongs. They are interested in the big picture, and will not want to dirty their image with such petty matters. Mid-Day is just one of the publications in their acquisition plans… there are many more in the pipeline.

     

    Yes, the Delhi and Bengaluru editions didn’t work. With abysmal readership and a nil score on the IRS Q2/2011 numbers for urban centres like Gurgaon and Noida, even the journos knew that the editions weren’t going anywhere.

     

    But you’ve got to give the jhatkas with compassion. Jaago, Jagran, jaago.

     

    * Disclosure: I have spent some of the best years of my professional life working with Mid-Day from 1993 to 2000.

     

    Hey Minister! Leave the cyberspace alone!

    My heart goes out to our dear central mantrijis. They’ve are subjected to the whims and fancies of all and sundry. The Prime Ministerji, Madamji, Babaji, Betiji, Saaleji, other Mantrijis and Mukhyamantrijis, various MPjis, some friendly Opposition leaderjis too. And the Babus, the secretaries, chaprasis and even the drivers. Not to forget the barber and the occasional masseur.

     

    But in the mother of all wtf-ness, I was shocked to see the otherwise reasonable Kapil Sibal making a hash of himself (literally, with an idiot prefixed on Twitter) by asking social networks etc to regulate content. Sibal, poor man, is under hajaar fire. 2G, 3G and of course the G family.

     

    There has been furore on the twitterosphere and for that matter all media. Monsieur Sibal should know that the internetwallahs aren’t divided and won’t sit quiet after a while like broadcasters and newspaperwallahs. Consequence: the issue has got internationalised and India is being compared to China. Which is silly. We aren’t.

     

    Time for credible awards

    I was at the Time-Out food awards on Tuesday evening, and the creme de la creme of restaurantwallahs were in attendance. Funnily, every other winner had just one thing to say: that being from Time-Out, the awards were credible.

     

    I think the credit for this goes to editorial head Naresh Fernandez and owner-bosswoman Smriti Ruia Kanodia. I’ve known Naresh for a bit, and must say he can be brutally credible. Which is perhaps why I trust Time-Out thoroughly. If Time-Out says the food at Restaurant X is good, you can be sure it’ll be good. Can’t say that about some other reviewers who love the free stuff, or at least whose publications do not have a policy of serving honest content. Ms Kanodia deserves credit for having survived Naresh and been successful despite his (and the Time-Out parents’ ) insistence that they will not bow to  advertiser diktats. Okay, okay credit also to the business and sales folk for being able to sell despite all these odds.

     

    Back to the point of awards not being credible. It’s unfortunate that the general perception is that awards instituted by media companies aren’t aboveboard. More on that some other day.

     

    Who’s the most IMPACT-ful of them all?

    It’s the big night for media professionals. It’s also for the first time I will not be attending an Impact Person of the Year. Guess the promoters there are still peeved that I quit to set up MxMIndia. As a career journalist, I couldn’t have turned to farming after moving on. Yes, I could’ve gone back to mainstream media or set up a Firstpost-like site that I was intending to, but, heck, I think it’s possible to have a good, clean media and marketing portal. With content that’s not got strings attached. Like afaqs and a few others.The market is waiting to grow.

     

    For the record, none of the ex-e4mers who’ve joined MxM were pulled out of their jobs. They’ve either joined me after quitting, or moved out because they saw a brighter future. The fact is that I did attempt to poach a few, but they didn’t join us.

     

    Before I digress any further, here’s my take on the nominees. First, I think it’s a great idea to have just eight nominees. Yes, there will be people who’ll be unhappy to have not made it to the List, but that’s fine.

     

    It’s a tough call… all the people are very, very worthy winners.

     

    Let’s take a look at the Eight:

    > Agnello Dias, Chairman & Co-founder, TapRoot India
    > Haresh Chawla, outgoing Group CEO, Network18 and Viacom18
    > Madhukar Kamath, MD & CEO, Mudra Group and Chairman, AdAsia
    > Man Jit Singh, CEO, Multi Screen Media
    > Rajiv Verma, CEO, Hindustan Times
    > Ronnie Screwvala, CEO and Founder Chairman, UTV
    > Sandeep Goyal, Non-Executive Founder Chairman, Dentsu India
    > Vineet Jain, Managing Director, Times Group

     

    I must confess I know who the winner is. So it would be incorrect to be a spoiler. I wish I had written this a week back, but I didn’t get down to it.

     

    But if I were to do a shortlist from the above and for their spectacular performance this year and also the way the voting works, here’s my shortlist:

     

    Agnello ‘Aggie’ Dias, Madhukar Kamath, Man Jit Singh, Ronnie Screwvala and Vineet Jain.

     

    > Aggie for producing some marvellous work in an industry dominated by Ogilvy and JWT.

    > Madhukar for dressing up Mudra beautifully and making it matter in the creative world and finally hawking majority stakes to an international major.

    > Man Jit Singh for finally getting all MSM channels in top gear

    > Ronnie Screwvala because his UTV Stars is doing so very well, the others are on action mode, Bloomberg-UTV is near-sold to Reliance and cementing the deal for 100 per cent stake to Disney.

    > Vineet Jain: well, you know about my reservations about Medianet, but otherwise the company rocks. Editorially, both The Times of India and Times Now set the agenda. The Anna Hazare movement and Commonwealth Games scams gave the government sleepless nights thanks to the belligerence of TOI and TN. Times Internet is doing well, and other brands are also flexing their muscles.

     

    As for those not in my shortlist: both Rajiv Verma and Haresh Chawla have been running run their empires with entrepreneurial zeal , and as for Sandeep Goyal, the man who sold his stake to Dentsu for Rs 240 crore, this line from ‘3 Idiots’ comes to mind: ‘Ustaad, tussi great ho!”

     

    Buzz me if you have a story to tell. Confidentiality assured. There are various ways you can reach me: pradyumanm[at]mxmindia.com, 23050B5D, pradyumanm[at]gmail.com, @pmahesh, 98338 76278.

     

    Disclaimer: Although Pradyuman Maheshwari is CEO of MxMIndia other than being editor-in-chief, he chucks those hats while writing Mediaah! So, the views expressed here are entirely his own and not those of the website and the team that runs it (especially the National Sales Head!).

  • In Freaking News, Ranjona Banerji reviews the fare on primetime news and the morning papers

    Much admiration for glam add-ons

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    Just to entertain myself, I decide to read the glamour supplements of The Times of India and Hindustan Times. Though now I am not sure whether entertainment or aggravation is what I was looking for. Since the arrival of Medianet and its variations in other newspapers, I usually ignore Bombay Times, HT Cafe and the entertainment/celebrity sections of all newspapers. Disclosure: I used to write a restaurant review for DNA After.Hrs but I haven’t seen that either for over a year and many years ago, I edited the Ahmedabad Times and Baroda Times. This takes nothing away from my life as I have minimal interest in Bollywood and tinpot celebs.

     

    So what have I learnt today? That a supermodel I had never heard of (though they told us her name) has agreed to launch a perfume (which was not named). This unnamed perfume will cost a million dollars and proceeds from sales will go to charity (named). So what do I make of this? That the supermodel paid Bombay Times, while the perfume and charity did not? Or that the editors just take the line of least resistance and do not name whoever had paying potential?

     

    This then turned into a fun game. Ekta Kapoor made an appearance (some new movie or something) on the front pages of both Bombay Times and HT Cafe. Money paid or not? Time Out has its food awards this week. HT Cafe covered it, Bombay Times did not. Because Bombay Times has its own awards or… By the way, these are the people whose pictures appeared in HT Cafe as guests or presenters at the Time Out awards: Abhay Deol, Malaika Arora Khan, Neha Dhupia, Shahana Goswami, Mahie Gill, Kalki Koechlin and Shruti Shah. Barring Deol and Dhupia (though it could be her large dress), none of the others looked like they’d eaten a meal in two weeks. Two winning chefs got a mention in the accompanying paragraph and no restaurants were mentioned (paid or not…?).

     

    A story on French producer (called veteran, which means just about anything) Marc Zermati is headlined ‘I’m not interested in Bollywood bulls**t’ is next to the Time Out story which perhaps shows someone in HT Cafe has a great sense of irony or none at all.

     

    Both Bombay Times and HT Cafe have the same people in the lead: Priyanka Chopra and Hrithik Roshan. Bombay Times says they both get ‘wet and naughty’. (Actually the headline says ‘Hrithik and PC get wet and naughty’ so for a moment I thought it had something to do with Hrithik and computer porn. The pic showed them really close, so give me a break). HT Cafe has Priyanka Chopra saying there is no “lip-lock” in this movie. So don’t get disappointed when you watch it, presumably.

     

    I was pleased to see that I no longer needed a magnifying glass to read my fortune in Bombay Times but was disappointed to see that it did not say reading “advertorial entertainment promotional features is bad for mental health”.

     

    Anyway, by this time I was so bored that I had to stop.

     

    Question for those who make them and those who read them: how do you guys do it? Full admiration!

  • In his fantasy, the mantri overlooked one critical ground reality: Leave alone the fact that it's impossible to pre-screen millions of posts, the Indian Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to free speech.

    Anil Thakraney: Sibal in Blunderland

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    I think Shri Kapil Sibal lives in a world of fantasy. Much like Alice in Wonderland.

     

    If you recall, the portly mantri made a sensational ‘discovery’ not too long ago. He claimed there was NO loss to the country in the 2G spectrum scam, and the figure being bandied about was in the media’s wild imagination. Yeah right, Alice.

     

    And now he’s back with another dreamy idea: To gag the internet. I guess the loyal minister had a wondrous vision the previous night in his journey to Wonderland. Where he imagined millions of Indians collectively sucking up to Sonia G and family, even as scams raged in her backyard. I like Kapilji’s idea of Wonderful India. Except that it in reality it isn’t Wonderful India. It’s Incredible India. Where politicians loot and plunder the nation freely, and lord over the junta on the basis of the good ol’ ‘Divide & Rule’ policy.

     

    In his fantasy, the mantri overlooked one critical ground reality: Leave alone the fact that it’s impossible to pre-screen millions of posts, the Indian Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to free speech. And when that right is misused, the courts decide on the fate of the alleged abuser. If we follow this principle when it comes to the traditional media, why must the digital media practise censorship?

     

    It’s simple, really: You defame someone, promote communal hatred or indulge in any writing/creation that’s illegal, you face a court trial and if convicted, you get punished. A tweet or a Facebook update can as easily be retrieved as a newspaper article or a television bite. In fact, Mr Suhel Seth is currently battling a lawsuit because of some allegedly defamatory tweets on ITC. So there you are.

     

    Basically, the man’s logic is so steeped in unreality, even little Alice would be confounded. What must worry us even more is that this nation is ruled by such fantastic ministers.

     

    ***

     

    PS: Great work from Coke. Very touching. Keep a handkerchief on standby.

  • Social media engagement for brands have many uses, and just like dating, socializing and evangelizing, there are things we must keep in mind.

    The Anchor: Karthi Marshan’s 5 rules for engaging financial services consumers on social media

    By Karthi Marshan

     

    Social media engagement for brands have many uses, and just like dating, socializing and evangelizing, there are things we must keep in mind. Here are a few of mine.

     

    #1 Listen first

    Obvious, isn’t it? Yet, we’d be amazed at the number of brands that ignore all the digital chatter their brands already enjoy / suffer, and dive blithely into a ‘campaign’ that plugs a product or extends their offline messaging. Just like you would at a party you have entered late, identify a group where some interesting conversation is happening, hang around and listen long enough to understand the mood, and then maybe, yes maybe consider interjecting with your two bits.

     

    #2 Speak human

    While it is contingent upon brand ambassadors to ensure propriety and appropriate representation of the brand’s stature, it would be prudent to eschew any language guidelines that the stuffed shirts throw at you and talk like you would at home or in a restaurant. It’s amazing how the people who run brands seem to check their human selves at the door when they communicate on behalf of brands, and start spouting what can only be described as ‘brandese’. Big words don’t impress, sincere ones do. So chill, be real, stay cool.

     

    #3 Chat, don’t plug

    Don’t be misled by it being called social ‘media’. Do not just blindly run your ads here. Just like you wouldn’t turn up at a friend’s cocktail party and start singing your brand’s jingle, apropos of nothing. Talk about what they are talking about. Be interested first, and then hopefully interesting. For heaven’s sake, don’t plug your messaging. Social media users are very sensitive to blatant plugging, and will flame the brand so badly, Hades (the place, not the person) will seem like Manali.

     

    #4 ‘Fess up

    When you join discussion groups or respond to comments about your brand and category, be clear about your identity. Don’t pretend to be just another regular guy who just ‘happens to really love the brand’. It smells a mile away. It’s perfectly fine to be a representative of the brand and defend it where relevant. So ‘fess up straight off the bat, don’t be cute.

     

    #5 Tell the truth

    While this sounds like a twin of ‘fess up’ there is a nuance I am trying to convey. Lots of brands are happy to troll the web and selectively display only the compliments they receive for good service. Stinks. If you want to share the bouquets, have the body parts to show off the brickbats also. So long as your intent to address the brickbats sincerely is evident, ‘they’ will understand. And just like in your marriage, saying sorry sincerely is usually more than enough. You will be forgiven and allowed to stop sleeping on the couch.

     

    Karthi Marshan heads marketing for the Kotak Mahindra Group.

     

  • In Freaking News, Ranjona Banerji reviews the fare on prime time news and the morning papers

    Channels need to develop editing skills

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    The fire at the AMRI hospital in Kolkata was one of those tragedies which challenge our skills as journalists. And how did we come out of it? Perhaps some of the visuals on television of mourning relatives were too much to handle as was the fear of having to look at victims of the fire but on the whole, not a bad job.

     

    TV channels went from covering the news to opinions but perhaps reporters still have to learn that editorialising should be left to those in the studio. Many commended Monideepa Banerjee of NDTV for her clear, concise reporting – experience probably helps (all right, it definitely does).

     

    Also, TV channels might do well to develop some editing skills. A clearly awe-struck reporter on Times Now was full of admiration for west Bengal chief minister’s efforts to help the situation from the ground when common sense would have told him that she would only have been hindering efforts. It took Saturday’s newspapers to point that out.

     

    The stories of how the fire spread and the deaths of helpless patients are horrifying in themselves. TV was quick to pick up on culpability and newspapers have gone further by looking at the lacunae in fire safety protocols across the country. (Needless to say they are more honoured in the breach.)

     

    The Kolkata (or in the case of The Telegraph, Calcutta) newspapers obviously have more details about the incident and were somewhat more scathing. It would be interesting to know just why the patients were locked in by the guards. Also, how much further we will follow this story – how soon, for instance, will all the board members currently arrested be out on bail and get away scot-free?

     

    **

     

    The Lokpal draft was released by the Parliamentary committee on Friday but the Kolkata fire seemed to have topped all other news stories – perhaps appropriately. Team Anna as usual started spitting fire and venom and Prashant Bhushan, called for some kind of a revolution against our democratic system – or so it seemed to me.

     

    No one else appears to have picked it up.

     

    Personally, I would be interested to know if the India Against Corruption movement also targets non-government corruption. The AMRI fire was evidently a case of private sector fraud. Any takers?

     

    **

     

    The Calcutta Club debate aired on Times Now was interesting – the subject was whether the means justify the ends, with reference to the Jan Lokpal movement and Team Anna. Of the six speakers – Salman Kurshid, Sitaram Yechury, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Sudhir K Singh, Arvind Kejriwal and Kiran Bedi – only Kejriwal and Bedi had severe problems understanding the protocol of a formal debate. They seemed to believe this was a normal TV haranguing match. Moderator Arnab Goswami had to work hard to ensure discipline and was tougher than he is on his TV extravaganzas. The politicians were civilised and Sudhir K Singh made the most sense.

  • Good, clean commercial from the makers of Nutrine Mahalacto. The main appeal lies in the fact that they have made a very routine announcement appear interesting.

    Debrief: Cute, cool and sweet

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    Good, clean commercial from the makers of Nutrine Mahalacto. The candy is now 20 percent bigger in size, and this needed to be communicated in the new TVC. Frankly speaking, it’s a rather boring offer, but to their credit they have managed to make it sound like fun.

     

    Animation has been used to make the Nutrine Mahalacto candy bar come alive as a spunky little character. The candy spots a goblet of milk on the dining table, and using a straw as a pole vault, it dives in. It then gobbles down the milk and becomes bigger in size.

     

    Not an award-winner by any stretch of imagination. It’s a simple story, but it’s been cutely told, the animation is cool too and most importantly: the kids will enjoy it. They are the target audience for the brand, and so that’s all that matters. To me, the main appeal lies in the fact that they have made a very routine announcement appear interesting.

     

    Rating: (On a scale of 1 to 5): 3. Good animation.

  • In Freaking News, Ranjona Banerji reviews the fare on prime time news and the morning papers

    Hazare rules. Absolutely!

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    Such tremendous excitement there was in TV land on Sunday morning. Anna Hazare and his band of merry anti-corruptionists were going to have a public debate on the Lokpal Bill, the perfidy of the Congress and the lies of the government and Hazare was going on a token hunger strike as well.

     

    From 8.30 am, all other news in India and the world came to a standstill. Not even the tragedy in Kolkata could compete with this momentous event. First, we all went with Hazare to Rajghat, so he could meditate. In the irony-free world that is TV news, it occurred to no one that calling Hazare a ‘Gandhian” is a bit of a misfit. Gandhi, for all that he approved of abstention from alcohol, had never recommended public flogging for drinkers. That is just one example of course.

     

    As Hazare sat at Rajghat, crowds gathered at various venues in India, to show their solidarity with this anti-corruption movement. Breathless reporters could not contain their exuberance at being part of such a movement. “If my cameraperson can pan the crowd, at least 200 people have shown up”, said the reporter. Elsewhere it was as many as 1200 people (compared to 200 that’s a lot!).

     

    It took Monday morning’s papers to tell us that the biggest crowd was in Delhi (18,000) and Mumbai managed 4000.One newspaper even had the temerity to report on critics of India Against Corruption, something which TV finds very difficult to do.

     

    Meanwhile, the rest of the world kept turning but you never would have known it.

     

    **

    The Times of India in Mumbai has decided to make an impact on Mumbai readers by taking up various issues with a massive first page edit marking its commitment to the city. Hindustan Times meanwhile continues with its own special reports focusing on various aspects of city life. This means that other city newspapers will have to step up their games.

     

    The AMRI hospital fire may have vanished from TV on Sunday but the newspapers carried on with the stories and examined the shortcomings in hospitals across the country. Hardly surprisingly, the situation is almost universally dismal.

     

    **

     

    It was interesting to read about Delhi’s 100th birthday as the capital of India. (Although technically I think that’s 100 years as the capital as decided by the British. Delhi has had capital status in earlier times as well, if my memory serves me right.) Anyway, there has been some interesting writing about the old city, the new growths and migrations, the history, the quirks and the people. Delhi often gets short shrift compared to other Indian cities so this was a welcome change.

     

    **

     

    Absolutely: an adverb which means totally, completely, without exception, from absolute which means free from restriction, unadulterated, complete, outright. In which case, what does one make of the following conversation:

     

    Anchor to reporter: “Give us a sense of what is going on at the assembly/fire/stadium.”

     

    Reporter: ‘Well, MLAs have thrown chairs/ many people are dead/ India has won the series.”

     

    Anchor: Absolutely.

     

    I have nothing further to say on the matter. Absolutely nothing. Absolutely.