Campaign: Jo Dilon Ko Jeetey – Kohima
Brand: Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC)
Company : Sony Entertainment Television
Agency: Leo Burnett
The Campaign
Sony Entertainment Television (SET), the flagship Hindi general entertainment channel from the Multi Screen Media network, is back with a cracking campaign for the eighth season of its big-ticket property, Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC). Created by Leo Burnett, the commercial opens on a family (with Mongoloid features) watching the game show on television. The same show is also being watched by three other people in another restro-bar (one of whom has Mongoloid features), two watchmen as they have dinner (both with Mongoloid features) and two chefs (one with Mongoloid features) in a restaurant kitchen. On television, a contestant named Poornima (she too has Mongoloid features) is seated on the hot seat, ready to answer her first question. And so, anchor Amitabh Bachchan asks, ?The city Kohima is part of which country?? He gives her four options ? China, Nepal, India and Bhutan. Poornima thinks for a while and decides to go for an ?audience poll?. Reacting to this, the two Hindi speaking men at the restro-bar sneer; the rest of the viewers on the other hand appear completely dejected. But just when hopes start slipping south, comes that twist. When 100% of the audience poll results deliver the answer as ?India?, Poornima?s face breaks into a happy grin. Bachchan looks at her in a questioning way as though he knew what was coming; and says ?but everyone knows that?. Poornima smiles and says, ?Yes, everyone knows it, but how many believe in it?? The camera now focuses on those viewers who were earlier dejected and finds them all looking satisfied and happy, while the mocking ones turn apologetic. Bachchan acknowledges the power of the game with a satisfied smile, KBC not only allows one to win some significant money but also hearts.
Our Take
At a time when many an Indian prefers to identify therself on the basis of race, caste, community and class rather than just an Indian, KBC continues to design its campaigns based on ?collaborative inclusion?. Its campaign ideas continue to be positioned as those that empower the common man where ?nothing is irrelevant? and ?everyone is special?. Nevertheless, this time, there is an aberration. Unlike the earlier campaign editions where humour played a significant role, the touch here appears to be a tad bit sensitive. After wealth and knowledge, this time the game?s latest ad seems to have decided to focus on equality of all regions wherein the northeastern part of India (a lost geographical region?politically and otherwise) clearly stands out as the protagonist. Why? Well, what do we, read people from mainland India, do when we encounter somebody with Mongoloid features? Almost instantly we categorise that human being as a ?tourist from South East Asia?. But what happens when we suddenly realise that the person is actually an Indian? Well, sadly, for many, the reactions still remain the same. The North East, for decades, has wanted to chime to its very own ?Indian-ness?; has craved to be acknowledged by the nation and its people. However, with time, that desire has only turned into a conscious indifference. KBC?s latest campaign captures that urge quite flamboyantly, especially when Bachchan quite knowingly tells Poornima, ?but everybody knows it (that Kohima is part of India)!?. Bachchan quietly leads the viewer to believe that there is more hidden to the question than what appears and once that hidden layer gets removed, the impact on the viewer is nothing less than colossal!
