Does WhatsApp India's first TV campaign make the cut?
We chatted with Neeraj Kanitkar, Creative Director, Taproot Dentsu to understand what went behind conceptualising the brand’s first-ever TVC

WhatsApp India recently launched its first ever TV campaign called ‘Share Joy, Not Rumours’ as the latest step in a comprehensive effort to address the challenge of misinformation and pernicious rumours.
WhatsApp worked closely with the Mumbai agency Taproot Dentsu and the filmmaker Shirsha Guha Thakurta to develop three sixty second films that each convey real scenarios about rumours that have spread on WhatsApp via spam as well as in family and school groups. Each film's protagonist teaches someone important in their lives to not spread rumours and to use WhatsApp controls such as the ability to block senders and leave groups where rumours are spread. We chatted with Neeraj Kanitkar, Creative Director, Taproot Dentsu to understand what went behind conceptualizing the brand’s first-ever TVC.
Kanitkar shared that given that WhatsApp has never done an integrated TVC campaign anywhere in the world, this was a thrilling opportunity. He revealed that while conceptualising the campaign, they took a conscious call to not paint indiscriminate forwarders as offenders. “Since often, the vast majority of people who forward such messages do it without intending any malice. If they can be convinced to be skeptical about forwarding messages then our hope was that those with malicious intent would be deprived of the oxygen. “
Kanitkar exclaimed that the process of making the films was a real treat. “We shot across Delhi and Mumbai, sometimes with real families with almost no acting experience to play key roles, and they did a great job!”
Expert eye
Praveen Nair, Creative Director, Jack in the Box Worldwide opines that while it is a great intent shown by the brand to address a very prevalent problem that plagues the society, the execution leaves a lot to be desired. “In masking the communication under the goodness of sharing, the brand has missed an opportunity to drive home an important message. Yes, it does explain how positively this messaging platform can be used, but has it brought to fore the impact of its misuse? The only question to ask is... is this campaign powerful enough to initiate a change in behaviour, in this case, a tendency to share things ignorantly and irresponsibly?”
Faisal Haq, VP - Operations (North), WATConsult opines that it finally seems that all roads are leading not just only towards 2019 but 2019 general elections… “Just before Rajasthan and Telangana state elections Facebook-owned company WhatsApp have released three one-minute films in nine different languages and with this it is not just conceding but trying to crackdown spread of fake news and rumours on its platform.”
Haq terms it as “a well-crafted campaign that not just apogee various scenarios we usually deal on daily basis on different WhatsApp personal and professional groups but how to understand the impact and act wisely with the fake news and rumours by talking to the source sending these messages.” He likes that the campaign also highlights the app features like remove the user spreading these fake news or leave/delete the group if need be.
Says Rohan Patil, AVP - Client Servicing, Geometry Encompass, “With great art direction, the ad has been produced in a lovely manner putting the message across not only seamlessly, but also with such simplicity. Great work WhatsApp! We needed this link (especially my dad), and has been shared on my Family group.”
Rajeesh Rajagopalan, Mumbai Head, Grapes Digital remarks that the campaign works as it's straight to the point and does that without being preachy. “It communicates the thought beautifully, in a manner that's easy to understand, considering the audience is across age groups, geographies and social strata. And, at the same time it's entertaining enough to hold the audience for a minute. Fake messages are a serious issue, and any campaign that addresses social issues usually face the challenge of being boring and dry.”
Deepak Singh, CCO, YAAP is of the opinion that being the first-ever ad from Whatsapp, which is a cult brand amongst the youth, he expected more from it in terms of story-telling. “It is a little too explanatory right now. The execution per se is fine. The characters chosen, the college setting, everything fits the scenario well. But I feel they could have played around with the story and concept to a slightly larger extent,” Singh says.
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E4M Our strategy is to target younger audiences through Sports: Rajiv Dubey, Dabur
The Head of Media at Dabur India spoke exclusively to exchange4media on the World Cup, associating with Indian Idol, the company’s digital spending and much more
With quirky campaigns, memes and moment marketing, timed with the ongoing World Cup and particularly the India-Pakistan matches, Dabur India has got considerable consumer attention for its popular brands – Red Paste, Cool King Hair Oil, Chyawanprash, Dabur Vita and the recently launched Bae Fresh Gel toothpaste.
The 140-year-old company is going big on key sporting events, World Television Premiere (WTP) movies and reality shows. It is now gearing up to become the title sponsor of popular talent show ‘Indian Idol’ on Sony TV for the first time, shared Rajiv Dubey, who leads the media strategy at Dabur.
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Swapan Seth's new book 'COOL' is out
The book is a reflection of the author's 'eclectic taste across categories'
Advertising professional and art collector Swapan Seth has announced the launch of his new book COOL. The book is described as "a ready reckoner to the hip and the happening, of the known and the very unknown."
The book is a reflection of the author's "eclectic taste across categories: from boltholes to exotic hideaways."
COOL has been published by Simon & Schuster India and is available on Amazon.
Seth is an ad veteran with a long and illustrious career in the industry. He became the youngest-ever Creative Director at Clarion at age 24. He was VP at 26 at Trikaya Grey. Two years later, he started his agency Equus.
He writes for publications such as The Economic Times, Hindustan Times and India Today. This is his second book and he has previously published THIS IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY.
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Disney Star signs 9 sponsors for Asia Cup PAK
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up come on board
e4m Staff Disney Star has signed nine broadcast and digital streaming sponsors for the upcoming Asia Cup.
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up have come on board for the upcoming tournament.
As reported earlier by exchange4media, Disney Star has sought Rs 26 crore for the co-presenting sponsorship on TV and Rs 30 crore for Disney+ Hotstar.
According to industry sources, the associate sponsorship on Star Sports has been priced at Rs 19.66 crore, whereas for the ‘powered by’ sponsorship on Disney+ Hotstar, the broadcaster is seeking Rs 18 crore.
As per the information available with exchange4media, Disney+ Hotstar has three sponsorship tiers-- co-presenting (Rs 30 crore), powered by (Rs 18 crore) and associate sponsorship (Rs 12 crore). The broadcaster is offering an estimated reach of 120-140 million for co-presenting sponsors, 90-100 million for powered by and 60-70 million for associate sponsorship.
A spot buy for 10 seconds has been priced at Rs 25 lakh for the India vs Pakistan matches, while for the non-India matches, the ad rate for 10 second is Rs 2.3 lakh. The India matches plus the final for ODIs has been priced at Rs 17 lakh per 10 seconds.
Asia Cup is scheduled to be held from 30 August, 2023, to September 17, 2023.
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Sorted 360 wins creative & social media mandate of Reliance Mall
The agency will manage offline and online campaigns for Reliance Mall
Sorted 360, an integrated creative and social media agency, has won the mandate to providing brand solutions for Reliance Malls across India.
“Sorted 360 is set to enhance Reliance Malls' market presence with their unparalleled creative prowess and strategic thinking,” read a press release.
“Sorted 360's commitment to pushing the boundaries of creative communication aligns perfectly with Reliance Malls' ethos. With a pan-India presence spanning across 19 cities and growing, Reliance Malls has consistently captivated customers by offering an array of Reliance brands and third-party fashion & lifestyle brands. The mall has established an unparalleled connection with its patrons through superior quality, a remarkable value proposition, and an unmatched shopping experience,” it read further.
"We are thrilled to welcome Sorted 360 as our trusted partner in advancing our brand presence across the nation," said the Head of Marketing at Relaice Malls. "Their proven expertise in retail, shopping center management, and innovative creative strategies make them the perfect fit for our vision."
"Partnering with Reliance Malls is a testament to our commitment to shaping extraordinary brand experiences," remarked Prerana Anatharam, Co-founder of Sorted 360. "We are excited to leverage our strategic and creative acumen to further elevate Reliance Malls as the epitome of convenience, choice, and excellence."
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KlugKlug onboards Hemang Mehta as Country Manager for Indias
Mehta was most recently Head of Agency Relationships at Network 18 Media & Investments
KlugKlug has appointed Hemang Mehta as its Country Manager for India.
Mehta will play a pivotal role in driving KlugKlug's growth and expansion within the Indian market and be responsible for Sales & GTM Strategy
Prior to that, he has also represented organisations like Exponential (now VDX.tv), India Today Digital and Rediff.com. His expertise spans various domains including digital media sales, mobile marketing, media planning, and buying, social media marketing, and more.
Hemang Mehta expressed his enthusiasm about joining KlugKlug, saying, "I am thrilled to be a part of KlugKlug, a forward-thinking platform that is reshaping the influencer marketing landscape. As much as I look forward to collaborating with the exuberant team at KlugKlug, I am super excited to interact with the brands to deliver powerful data-backed Influencer solutions that will guarantee business outcomes."
Commenting on the appointment, Kalyan Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO of KlugKlug, stated, "We are excited to welcome Hemang Mehta to our team as the Country Manager for India. His extensive experience in digital media sales and marketing will be instrumental in driving our efforts to provide influencer marketing solutions to our clients. We believe Hemang's leadership will be key in scaling our operations and expanding our reach within the Indian market."
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