MTV has introduced a campaign in celebration of Pride Month.
Said Anshul Ailawadi, Business Head, Youth, Music, and English Entertainment cluster, Viacom18: “Awareness is the starting point of LGBTQIA+ allyship and action. Our #TucchhaVichaar campaign aims to make the GenZ aware of unconscious biases in a simple yet clever way. The role reversal encourages a more empathetic view of the challenges faced by the LGBTQIA+ community. We hope the film inspires everyone who watches it to become better allies in action.”
Leading youth entertainment brand, MTV, from Viacom18, has launched a new culture-defining youth campaigntitle ‘MTV Question Marks’. As a part of the initiative, MTV organised a ‘mindset reorientation workshop for parents’ to reduce academic pressure on today’s youth.
Speaking on announcing its latest campaign, Anshul Ailawadi, Head – Youth, Music, and English Entertainment, Viacom18, said, “MTV has never shied away from shining the light on themes that matter to young Indians. Our latest campaign, MTV Question Marks, is a clarion call for change. With this initiative, we hope to bring a mindset-shift amongst parents, to move beyond traditional academic benchmarks, and believe in the capability of young minds to define success on their own terms.” To expand the campaign’s reach, MTV has forged strategic partnerships.
On his first day as CEO of MTV India, he walked in with colour on his finger nails. Each one different, and bright. A former friend once told this writer that he wanted to buy the man some printed socks from Kuala Lumpur, given the man’s love for all things stylish. At the press conference for an entertainment channel – yes, a real one – that didn’t quite take off, he stood up the podium with the hair on the back of his painted red.
And now Sunil Lulla is all set to add colour and style to Astrum, a PR and advocacy firm based in New Delhi NCR. Better known as its founder and Managing Partner Ashwani Singla’s agency, Astrum fashions itself as “India’s first science-based specialist Reputation Management advisory”. We don’t know that what means, but Astrum sure has had a fair good set of clients over the years.
Ashwani Singla
Lulla, a communique said, will play a vital role in strengthening Astrum’s capability as a trusted advisor to the C Suite and adding fuel to its growth engine. Said Singla: “For over two decades that I have known and worked with Sunil, I have admired how he combines strategic clarity with execution excellence to achieve extraordinary outcomes. Our clients and colleagues will benefit from his sage counsel and proven acumen.”
“The impact of reputation, risk and regulation on business is a major pre-occupation of the C Suite and more so today; I am delighted to be a part of a team that has an enviable track record of helping CXOs successfully negotiate this landscape,” added Lulla.
Lulla should know, having spent a lifetime in the media ecosystem. Eons at Wunderman Thompson’s earlier avatar of JWT, MTV (where he effected a turnaround), Sony Entertainment Television (not yet Sony-Zee), Times Network (yes, with Arnab Goswami), Indya.com (remember the Sunday Times of India roadblock?) for Pradeep Kar’s Microland, HMV (now SaReGaMa), Grey, Balaji Telefilms (yes, with Ekta Kapoor) and television audience measurement body BARC India, where he was tasked by the Board to undertake some cleansing operations.
The role doesn’t appear to be a full-time one, and will be in addition to a slew of other projects Lulla is involved in as part of his firm Linus Adventures. Linus, btw, is Sunil spelt ulta.
Lulla is an active runner (yes, a marathoner), loves swimming, working out in the gym, enjoys his movies, music and books, and if you are on his friend’s list, perhaps the first to greet you on your Big Days. And, yes, he is also good in mixology.
We don’t know how he is with mixing liquids. But the number of engagements and bosses he’s worked surely indicates he can mix things well. And Astrum is, as the communique claims, a “science-based” firm.
There is some history to the chemistry between Lulla and Singla (they known each and worked with each other for over two decades). Science, mixology… fireworks?!
Viacom18 and MTV Staying Alive Foundation are back with Season 2 of television series MTV Nishedh.
Speaking about the campaign, Anshul Ailawadi, Head – Youth & English Entertainment, Viacom18, said: “We believe that doing good is good for business, and that ethos drives our content choices too. The maiden season of MTV Nishedh performed well with a consolidated viewership of over 11 Mn and a growing digital following. We are excited to push the boundaries when it comes to content narratives and to shine the spotlight on topics that might be considered taboo.”
Added Georgia Arnold, Executive Director of MTV Staying Alive Foundation: “I’m excited that we’ll be able to reach even more young people, empowering them to make informed choices about the social and health issues they encounter. With partners like Viacom18, it gives the campaign monumental leverage in terms of reach and engagement.”
Commenting on the partnership, Sarthak Ranade, Managing Director of Janssen India & South Asia, part of the Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson said: “Johnson & Johnson continues its fight against TB in India, building on our longstanding work in collaboration with the Government of India, NGOs and other partners. We believe that there is tremendous power in multi-sectorial partnerships to help turn the tide against this devastating disease. Through our partnership with the MTV Staying Alive Foundation on Season 2 of MTV Nishedh, we aim to empower the youth of today to make a real change and champion the cause of a TB-free India.”
MTV, the youth-centric entertainment television channel, , launches the new season of its marquee show ‘MTV Splitsvilla X4’. The 14th season of MTV Splitsvilla X4, co-powered by Wildstone Deos and Perfumes and ONN…Total Comfort, is all set to go on air from 12th November on MTV and Voot.
Sunny Leone and Arjun Bijlani will be hosting the show.
Speaking on amping up the content portfolio with its marquee property, Anshul Ailawadi, Head – Youth, Music and English Entertainment cluster, Viacom18, said: “MTV continues to spearhead youth entertainment in India with its repertoire of in-vogue content that evolves with its target audience. On the heels of successful franchises like MTV Roadies – Journey in South Africa and MTV Hustle 2.0, we’re set to launch the latest season of our tentpole show, MTV Splitsvilla X4. We’re sure the new season will be loved by all fans, old and new.”
DDB Mudra Group has partnered with MTV Hustle 2.0, a rap/hip-hop reality show, to launch ‘BotHard’ – an AI-powered rapper. The campaign offers a unique tech innovation and consumer engagement experience. It is conceptualised by the DDB Mudra Group.
Speaking on the initiative, Anshul Ailawadi, Head – Youth, Music and English Entertainment cluster, Viacom18, said: “MTV has always been about bold visions and big moves. ‘BotHard’ is an example of disruptive, transmedia storytelling that complements the raison d’être for Realme MTV Hustle 2.0. With this initiative, we hope to redefine the consumer experience for our Gen-Z and millennial fans.”
Added Utsav Chaudhuri, Marketing Head – Youth, Music, and English Entertainment, Viacom18: “At MTV, we focus on strategic and innovative experiences across multiple youth touch-points. We are at the cusp of exciting possibilities with AI to drive narratives, recall value and immersive consumer engagement. With the confluence of avant-garde technology and a multi-platform approach we developed ‘BotHard’, a first-of-its-kind AI-powered rapper, to further put the spotlight on real, unmatched talent curated by Realme MTV Hustle 2.0.”
Speaking on the campaign, Rahul Mathew, Chief Creative Officer, DDB Mudra Group said: “While this idea is built on cutting-edge technology, the most exciting part for us was how true it had to stay to hip-hop culture for it to be accepted by the audience. It lives at the right intersection of culture, creativity, and technology.”
Viacom 18’s youth entertainment brand MTV along with Hyundai is set to launch a social media poll-led adventure travel-series. Called ‘Hyundai x MTV What’s Your Venue’, the series will decide the journey of each influencer duo as they set out to explore cities with their travel companion the new Hyundai Venue.
Commenting on the collaboration, Anshul Ailawadi, Head – Youth, Music and English Entertainment, Viacom18, said: “Through ‘Hyundai x MTV What’s Your Venue’, our audiences will decide the influencers’ adventures via social media polls. As a youth entertainment brand, we are redefining entertainment by putting our audience in the driver’s seat and making them a crucial part of the show.”
Added Tarun Garg, Director (Sales, Marketing & Service), Hyundai Motor India: “As a progressive and youth-oriented brand, we are glad to collaborate with MTV India for this new travel & lifestyle adventure series set in motion for the young Millennials and Gen Z to experience the new Hyundai Venue… We strongly believe that the young audience of MTV will enjoy the series and experience of travel.”
MTV in collaboration with Ogilvy has launched Memory Karaoke – an initiative to help those living with early Alzheimer’s to cope with memory loss. Emphasising how ‘Forgetting Isn’t Funny’, Memory Karaoke, a custom-created karaoke will feature four foot-tapping songs on https://www.mtvmemorykaraoke.com, based on commonly forgotten information by those in the early stages of Alzheimer’s.
Said Anshul Ailawadi – Head, Youth Music and English Entertainment at Viacom18: “Music is nothing less than manna for one and all. MTV Memory Karaoke elevates this very role of music to a higher plane by making a small yet significant difference to the lives of those affected by Alzheimer’s and their caregivers. We at MTV are humbled by the opportunity to be a part of this initiative.”
Added Vidya Shenoy, an integrative therapist and dementia care specialist who is the Secretary-General of ARDSI: “Music is a therapeutic tool for the mind, body and soul. Memory Karaoke will be an enjoyable, assistive aid for those with early Alzheimer’s to Retain. Reminisce. Recall.”
Elaborating on their idea, Akshay Seth, Group Creative Director, and Chinmay Raut, Senior Creative Director at Ogilvy Mumbai, said, “Growing up, we’ve all experienced how retaining new information would become easier whenever it was set to a tune. With the same being true for those with early Alzheimer’s, we wanted to create a platform where tracks could be customized by the family member by entering important information of the affected member as lyrics. Memory Karaoke offers personalized songs for both to practice daily, resulting in better retention and recall over time. The mission is to introduce an enjoyable, daily ritual that takes away the frustration and helps the caregiver and the person with early Alzheimer’s to eventually sing in a manner comfortable to them.”
MTV Insights Studio has launched the 2021 edition of its MTV Youth Study titled ‘Atmanirbhar by Circumstance’, a handbook for the advertising and marketing community that provides a “comprehensive overview of India’s Gen Z population”.
Said Anshul Ailawadi – Head, Youth Music and English Entertainment at Viacom18: “2020 has been a pivotal year in so many ways. This edition of our youth study is the first such exercise post the first wave of the pandemic. It offers a rare glimpse into how young Indians are coping with a changing world in which every aspect of their lives – from their education and relationships to their careers and interests – needs to be rebuilt. It will go a long way in helping brands, creators and publishers establish a deeper connection with their Gen Z constituency.”
As CEO Sunil Lulla said his final goodbyes at the BARC India headquarters in Central Mumbai, he was all set to make a switch from an ‘Employee Life’ to a ‘Portfolio Career’.
The entrepreneurial journey includes:
• The Linus Adventures which will assist Promoters and CXOs scale their business and become leader brands.
• Being co-founder of a UAE-based EdTech start-up focussed on India and the MENA region
• An active angel investor in early-stage start-ups across multiple domains.
In addition, he will continue his support to the Children’s Movement for Civic Awareness (CMCA and hopes to learn a new way of running (known as Maximum Aerobic Function / Low Heart Rate whereby he can breathe smarter to successfully complete many a marathon and staying more refreshed).
An MBA from SP Jain Institute, Lulla has spent long and successful years in advertising, broadcast and digital before he took charge at BARC in October 2019. He spent 11 years in JWT in India, China and Taiwan, three years at HMV (now Saregama), three years at MTV India which he turned around, a year at Diageo, two years at Indya.com, three years at Sony Entertainment and then eight years as CEO and MD of the Times Television Network. Later he spent nearly four years as CMD of Grey Group India before making the switch to Balaji where he was there for a year-and-a-half.
It may be recalled that Lulla had announced his decision to move on from BARC last week. Fellow advertising agency captain Nakul Chopra took charge at the television audience measurement company today (August 25).
Center fresh chewing gum and mints has announced its collaboration with MTV to release a track ‘Taazi Saans, Taazi Soch’ dedicated to the young in the context of the ongoing health care issues across the country. This initiative was co-conceptualised by Perfetti Van Melle India Pvt Ltd and Wavemaker India in partnership with MTV India.
Speaking about Center fresh’s Collaboration with MTV, Rohit Kapoor – Director Marketing, Perfetti Van Melle India said: “Center fresh has always kept freshness at the center of its core philosophy. With this initiative, we wanted to spotlight the power of a fresh perspective within the fold of our communication. The younger generation has always been our core TG and we have continued to draw upon instances from their life in our brand assets. This year, we decided to salute the resolve, dedication and fresh perspective that the country’s youth demonstrated during the second wave. The partnership with MTV was an obvious one given the platform’s strong youth consumer base and Krsna’s lyrics and rendition have helped tie this tribute with the brand’s philosophy in a seamless manner.”
Viacom18 Media has bagged rights for Spanish Football League LaLiga exclusively to the Indian subcontinent for the next three years. Enabled and supported by Rise Worldwide, LaLiga will air exclusively on MTV in India, along with select national and regional network channels and live-streamed on Voot and Jio platforms. The 2021 event kicks off on August 13.
Speaking about LaLiga on MTV, Anshul Ailawadi, Business Head – Youth, Music and English Entertainment said, “We at MTV have always known that football enjoys a groundswell of support amongst young-at-heart Indians. The LaLiga in particular, is a cultural phenomenon all over the World. When the folks from RISE Worldwide introduced us to LaLiga team, we realised that this was a partnership waiting to happen – the vision was common, the vibes were good, and we quickly put pen to paper.”
On the association with Viacom18, Oscar Mayo, Executive Director, LaLiga said: “We are excited to partner with Viacom18 (MTV India) and further bolster the LaLiga fandom to an ever-growing football fan base in India. Having set one of the highest standards of football globally and India gaining tremendous momentum, we are confident that we will reach and engage with the youthful audience that MTV as a destination appeals to.”
MTV Insights Studio has launched the 2021 edition of its MTV Youth Study titled ‘Atmanirbhar by Circumstance’, a handbook for the advertising and marketing community that provides a “comprehensive overview of India’s Gen Z population”.
As CEO Sunil Lulla said his final goodbyes at the BARC India headquarters in Central Mumbai, he was all set to make a switch from an ‘Employee Life’ to a ‘Portfolio Career’.