Why is this work relevant for PR?

More than 1 million Ganesha idols are made during India’s biggest Hindu festival Ganesh Chaturthi. And few of these are made by Muslim craftsmen! We took inspiration from this real story and converted it into a thought-provoking film for Red Label to create a clutter-breaking conversation with its purpose of making the world a more inclusive place. Releasing the film prior to the festival, we mirrored the timing of events in the story. Seeded digital conversations got fuelled by supporters and detractors debating and inspiring celebrities and influencers also to join. Becoming an instant pop-culture hit, it made brand’s role.

Background

Tea in India is more than a beverage. People come together over a cup of tea: to converse, agree, and close deals. Tea transcends across demographics, regions, castes, and customs. It’s common practice to offer tea when someone visits. Every day a billion passionate cups of tea are consumed in India. In short, tea is the social glue that keeps India together. That’s why Brooke Bond Red Label, India’s leading tea brand, believes in providing the ‘taste of togetherness’ through tea to make the world a more welcoming place. Over the years, Red Label has become an ambassador of social change by questioning India’s deep-rooted prejudices around gender biases, live-in relationships, and stereotypes. In 2018, Red Label wanted to raise the bar by tackling a sensitive topic: addressing religious discrimination and violence to help India become a more inclusive and tolerant society. A risky undertaking in a very religious society.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

Differences and commonalities often lie closely together. Particularly for religion! People see their religion as ‘the only truth’ and overlook that religion isn’t about being right. Religion is a personal experience, connecting you with your spiritual side, enriching your life and that of others. Religion is a way of life. This way of life finds its strongest expression in worship at – homes, places of worship and religious festivals. Worship is the ONE thing ALL religions have in common: the process to re-focus mind, explore a spiritual side and celebrate the true nature of religion. Celebrating worship, irrespective of religion has the power to make people re-assess their pre-conceptions about other religions. We narrated a story about worship between a Hindu who wants to buy a religious idol and a Muslim who crafts Hindu idols. And how a simple cup of tea helps them to overcome differences and realize commonalities.

Describe the strategy (30% of vote)

Find a commonality amongst all religions that • outweighs the perceived differences (Hindu vs Muslim) • makes people re-assess their religious views • can spark a national discussion on religious freedom Craft a human story that • illustrates the effects when we focus on commonalities instead of differences • people can relate to in their daily lives • lets a cup of tea play a role Find a moment when religious sentiment is high to • maximize relevance • multiply impact That moment was the 11 day-long Hindu Festival of Ganesh Chaturthi (September 13th-23rd, 2018), marking the homecoming of Lord Ganesha (Lord of New Beginnings) as the right social context. People buy crafted Ganesha idols during the festival (more than 1 million Ganesh idols are made every year). Few of which are made by Muslim craftsmen! Focus on differences that block people from seeing commonalities. Bridge the gap, building inclusiveness.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

The campaign was relevant to almost every Indian, thus we launched the campaign through digital platforms right before the festival to connect with audiences across demographics and geographies. The online film was released a few days before the festival of Lord Ganesha when idol selection happens, mirroring the same timing of events in the story. After seeding in social networks (16m+ traceable views in just 5 days), the film sparked a nationwide debate among supporters and detractors that kept fuelling itself. As festival-goers actively shared updates and contextual posts, the campaign theme was automatically picked up. On WhatsApp and other discussion forums, a message of peace and communal harmony was established as common ground. Print and digital media outlets also picked up the campaign, acting as multipliers. The campaign was promoted for 5 days, but the video was shared and discussed on a national level for many months afterward.

List the results (30% of vote) – must include at least two of the following tiers:

Brand and business metrics • 10.4% increase in sales (Volume: Q4-18 over Q4-17). Source: Nielsen • Brand Equity increased 134 Basis Points (Q4-18 over Q4-17) Source: Nielsen • Spontaneous Awareness increased by 500 Basis Points (Q4-18 over Q4-17) Source: IMRB Recognitions • Winner of CNBC Indian Business Leaders Awards – Best Brand Campaign of the Year • Identified as best Ad of 2018 by 10 media houses Campaign metrics • 16 Million+ traceable views in 5 days • 18000+ social media comments • 250.000 US$ in earned media Budget & Media Spending • 21,000 US$ production cost • 16,000 US$ Media spending Brooke Bond Red Label successfully started a national discussion about religious freedom, inclusiveness, and openness. The brand succeeded in getting the nation to co-advocate inclusive societies. The brand and business metrics improved exponentially, confirming the fit of the campaign’s message to overall brand purpose. All over a warm cup of tea!

Please tell us about the social behaviour and/or cultural insights that inspired your campaign

India has freedom of religion. The Indian constitution supports and promotes the concept of Religious Harmony, allowing everyone to choose their own religion. Yet the reality looks very different: religiously inspired communal violence happens often. In 2017, over 800 cases of communal violence were reported in India, causing over 2300 injuries and 111 deaths. Source: India Today. Religious discrimination in India kills people. Hindus and Muslims believe they belong to different civilizations. They have different religious philosophies based on conflicting ideas and concepts. They neither intermarry nor eat together. Their entrenched beliefs about their differences causes tensions. Trying to mediate meets substantial resistance on both sides. Changing this scenario requires the openness to dialogue. But one needs a new perspective to do so.