The Campaign

OLX Daastaan was an initiative to reunite people with their belongings that didn’t make it across the border 68 years ago. OLX, an online marketplace for used goods in over 28 countries including India and Pakistan, opened up their platform for cross-listings between the 2 countries. People on both sides were then asked to list items on the website that belonged to the pre-partition era. Thus, giving many a platform to track down and regain their long lost belongings from the partition, while bringing 2 sparring nations a step closer.

Execution

On August 15, 2015 which was Independence Day for both India and Pakistan, OLX.in and OLX.com.pk merged their platform for cross-listings. People from both countries were then asked to list items from the pre-partition era on the website using the prefix #DAASTAAN. This gave the migrants from the partition a chance to trace and trade back their lost belongings after 68 years.

• Over 1 million listings on OLX India’s and Pakistan’s platform. • Over 1000’s reunited with their belongings • User engagement went up by 334.77% • 62,078,818 in media impressions Amidst all the numbers, our biggest result lie in the intangible joy of those who got back their past and the hopes of those who are still waiting.

The Situation

1947 saw the world’s largest migration when India and Pakistan partitioned. Every newspaper covered this major event in history but what went unnoticed was the story of the belongings that the migrants left behind. Belongings they never saw again. OLX, a website for used goods, rewrote this story by reuniting these people with their long lost memories using their platform. The campaign generated tremendous response from both the people and media in India and Pakistan. For every major press coverage we received, 1000s of stories were also being shared online by not just migrants but their grandchildren as well.

The Strategy

When India and Pakistan partitioned in 1947, 15 million people were forced to leave their homes and migrate to another country. While the news back then focused on the world’s largest migration, what it missed was the story of the belongings people left behind. OLX, being a website for used goods, saw an opportunity to take advantage of their global platform by enabling people from both countries to list such items that belonged to the pre-partition era on the website. Giving people a chance to be reunited with their lost belongings while initiating a trade of good-will between India and Pakistan.