Pitch work.
The media has played a big part in India becoming increasingly divisive. They habitually sensationalize stories and dish out biased opinion instead of telling the truth. In such trying times, we got an opportunity to launch a media portal that reported the truth and looked at news from the nation’s perspective.
Our idea was to use a popular Indian idiom - buri nazar waale tera muh kaala - as the centerpiece of our campaign, to call attention to the divisive forces in the country. It loosely translates to, “You, who casts an evil eye or feels jealous of me, may great shame befall you.” You can think of it as a good luck charm or even a reverse curse.
Instead of regular OOH we suggested using larger than life cut-outs (a common sight in India, usually reserved for movie stars) of people like politicians, news anchors and propagandists who use fake news to divide communities. For the launch event we used another cultural marker — the burning of Raavan. During Dussehra, communities all over the country get together to erect a large effigy of Raavan (a mythological villain). On the day of the festival, Ram (mythological hero) fires a flaming arrow that sets Raavan on fire, to symbolize the triumph of good over evil. We suggested setting up an effigy to symbolize all that was currently wrong with media and get the managing editor of My Nation to set it ablaze with a flaming arrow. This symbolic triumph of truth would be webcast through social media to announce the launch of My Nation.
It won us the account.
