The Brief

Amar Ujala is one of the highest-read Hindi daily newspapers in India. It launched the ‘Beti Hi Bachayegi’ (‘Only daughters can save the world’) campaign in 16 cities in 4 major Indian states. Primary objective was to create awareness about the negligence towards women in India and urge the people to stand up for women rights. It was a call to take action and give the daughter equal rights in the family and society. Strategy was specially designed as per the target audiences, and successfully integrated into existing media in a focused manner to reach the masses through channelized communication.

Creative Execution

India has been locked in a struggle against years of culturally ingrained prejudices against females. Women in India are less educated, less secure, lesser in number and have a lower quality of life on an average than their male counterparts. With numerous calls to save the girl child falling on deaf years, Amar Ujala took a leap and launched a unique campaign called ‘Beti Hi Bachayegi’; meaning ‘only daughters can save the world’. This idea gave a new perspective to the harsh realities faced by women in India and attempted to establish them as ‘saviors of society’, rather than victims.

Describe the creative solution to the brief/objective.

The campaign ran across 16 cities in 4 major Indian states. Starting with a simple print ad, it gained momentum through multiple media including editorial, digital, print and on-ground activities. Film icon Madhuri Dixit endorsed the campaign and many other celebrities and prominent figures, across industries, associated themselves with the campaign by signing the pledge to save the daughter. On-ground activities like painting competitions (a calendar was made with winning entries), public rallies, candlelight marches, street plays, marriage registration camps and women’s health camps were organised to create awareness and bring people face-to-face with the harsh realities of the status of Indian women, and emphasize the need for change.

Results

The campaign spurred a mass movement and people from all walks of life took part in the painting competition (over 13000 entries), attended rallies & candlelight marches (over 10000 participants), participated in street plays, and registered their marriages (over 1500 registrations). This campaign attracted the attention of many high profile Indian celebrities from the world of arts, entertainment and sports. Amar Ujala’s ‘Take a Pledge’ drive to save and protect the daughter evolved into the world’s largest pledge drive, with 548,378 participants, thereby creating a possible Guinness World Record.