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Tag: Big B

  • upGrad ropes in Amitabh Bachchan as brand ambassador

    upGrad ropes in Amitabh Bachchan as brand ambassador

    Mumbai: Asia’s higher ed-tech major upGrad has signed actor Amitabh Bachchan as its official brand ambassador. 

    As a part of the partnership, the actor will be seen supporting upGrad’s brand value through endorsements and promotions of services offered by the edtech company, while emphasising the importance of life-long learning for progressive career growth. 

    “We take responsible marketing very seriously, and in that respect, what better than having a personality like Amit ji’s that carries so much faith and respect,” said upGrad India CEO Arjun Mohan. “Our marketing strategies are at the core of evolving industry dynamics and therefore, keeping in mind the market sentiments and audience appeal, we have taken a conscious call, which is also aligned with upGrad’s brand value of having a celebrity that resonates credibility and shall have a lasting impact on our viewers. We are elated to have Amit ji on-board and drive future developments which in turn shall further solidify our ambition of positioning upGrad as a household name, wherever they say higher education.”

    In line with upGrad’s overall marketing goals, the latest development will be followed by other events with each having a strong message addressing the higher-ed challenges that persist across the country, at large, according to the brand.

    upGrad recently unveiled its marketing campaign #AssNahinAssetBano that captures the essence of what goes around the annual appraisal period in a corporate world to create urgency amid professionals who have parked upskilling for an indefinite period.

  • Kalyan Jewellers withdraws ad featuring Amitabh Bachchan

    Kalyan Jewellers withdraws ad featuring Amitabh Bachchan

    MUMBAI: Kerala-based jewellery chain, Kalyan Jewellers, has withdrawn its controversial TVC featuring Amitabh Bachchan and his daughter. The advertisement came under attack from a bank union for allegedly depicting banks in a negative light.

    The union had termed the ad as “disgusting” which aimed at creating distrust in the banking system.

    The jewellery group on Sunday issued a statement, that the ad will be removed from all media with immediate effect.

    The statement by Kalyan Jewellers executive director Ramesh Kalyanaraman reads: “We sincerely regret the inadvertent hurt caused and withdraw the advertisement from all media with immediate effect. We understand that the advertisement has hurt sentiments of some people including members of our esteemed banking community. Any such hurtful interpretation being drawn is unintended. We state that the creative advertisement was a work of fiction and not a reflection of banking employees at large.”

    The jewellery brand had earlier written a letter to the general secretary of the bank union to state that the company will put a statutory warning stating that all character and incidents are fictional.

    “Please accept our unconditional disclaimer for the same. We shall, within three working days from today, add ‘characters and situations depicted are fictional. The brand does not intend to disrespect or malign any person or community’ before the advertisement,” read the statement. 

    In the ad, Bachchan, depicted as a person with integrity and honesty, is seen visiting a bank branch along with his daughter to return the extra money credited in his pension account and his bitter encounter with bank employees in the process. 

    The controversial ad sparked an outrage among the banking community after All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC) general secretary Soumya Datta alleged that the theme, tone and tenor of the ad were “disgusting, derogatory, to say the least and is aimed to create distrust in the banking system, for pure commercial gain.”

    The union had threatened to sue Kalyan Jewellers accusing it of casting aspersion and hurting the sentiments of millions of personnel through the advertisement. Kalyan Jewellers rejected the allegation, saying it was pure fiction.

    This is the second time that Big B has faced the heat for an advertisement, the first one was the Horlicks ad campaign “Mission Poshan”. The 75-year-old actor found himself at the centre of a controversy after several public health experts wrote to him asking to end his association with the brand. The experts believed that the campaign is disingenuous and flouted the optimal nutrition norms.

  • Tata Sky’s campaign sends Big B & Nayanthara hunting for one rupee change

    MUMBAI: With the critical fourth phase of digitization underway, Tata Sky, a content distribution platform providing Pay TV and OTT services, has rolled out its latest ‘Dhamaka Rupee’ campaign. The campaign features Nayanthara for the southern markets and Amitabh Bachchan across other markets in India.

    The campaign aims to encourage consumers to make the right switch from analog cable to Tata Sky, with the Dhamaka Pack (for the rest of the country) and South Special Pack (for the five South states). These unique packs loaded with over 220 channels and services, includes the best of entertainment across genres.

    In way that is quintessentially Tata Sky, the campaign, directed by national award-winning director Shoojit Sircar, has legend Amitabh Bachchan portraying a grumpy yet loveable shop owner – ‘Uncleji’ whose life has turned upside down because of the success of the Dhamaka 199 pack. The pack, selling like hot cakes, forces him to keep stocking one rupee coins as change to give back to the customer.

    Meanwhile in a small village in southern India, the affable Meenakshi, essayed by superstar Nayanthara, is grumpy too as she looks for the elusive one rupee coin, thanks to the success of Tata Sky’s South Special Pack.

    TVC Links:

    Amitabh Bachchan
    1. https://youtu.be/on5kg-JXwu0

    2. https://youtu.be/B0O7_KX6Qbc

    3. https://youtu.be/EXWO_aRzIkw

    4. https://youtu.be/MOhkBLwHN5E

    Nayanthara
    1. Kannada – https://youtu.be/Qg7u6tGOp74

    2. Malayalam – https://youtu.be/i_D3VsFRP3Y

    3. Tamil – https://youtu.be/Sm4tCOavRGo

    4. Telugu – https://youtu.be/ztvEa1EV_SI

    Tata Sky’s chief communications officer Malay Dikshit said, “It’s second nature for us Indians to be exact about the value for what we buy. Through this campaign we are looking at targeting 70 mn cable TV households across the country.”

    Ogilvy and Mather‘s chief creative officer Sukesh Nayak, said, “We decided to play on the fun side of the struggle that a shopkeeper has to go through, when he has to return the change for such a popular pack.”

    Right from the ‘Phone Ghumao’ campaign in 2013 to the Missed Call campaign in 2015, Tata Sky has always looked to generate awareness about the merits of digitization in rural markets and on the simplicity to get a set-top box.

    The current integrated campaign comprises two lead films with three smaller duration films each that talk about how Tata Sky offers the best of entertainment at the best price possible as compared to conventional analog connections. The campaign will be rolled out in multiple languages that include Hindi, Marathi, Oriya, Bengali, Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam and Tamil.

  • Disney brings Graphic’s ‘Astra Force’ on Big B’s birthday

    Disney brings Graphic’s ‘Astra Force’ on Big B’s birthday

    MUMBAI: Graphic India and Disney Channel India will reveal the first look of its superhero series Astra Force on the occasion of Amitabh Bachchan’s birthday – 11th October as a special surprise for the millions of megastar’s fans around the world.

    In the month of August last year, Graphic and Disney announced the production of the animated series -“Astra Force.” with legendary icon, Bachchan. A funny and fast-paced, action-adventure series, filled with laughs and thrills, “Astra Force” tells the story of a mythical hero from a distant world, who was stranded on th earth millions of years ago after an epic space battle.

    When 8-year old brother and sister twins accidentally awaken the mythical superhero from his long hibernation, they must teach him about our modern world and join Astra to save the universe from a new wave of giant monsters and intergalactic threats.

    “At the heart of everything we do at Disney is tell great stories and we tell them in a manner that our audiences that can relate with. We have been building on our local animation slate on Disney Channel; offering content and content that kids have come to love and now with Astra Force, we are extremely happy to have partnered with Sharad and Mr. Bachchan to bring in another interesting facet to storytelling in this space, said Disney India VP – content and communications, media networks, Vijay Subramaniam.

    “Amitabh Bachchan is a real life superhero to millions, including myself, so it’s no surprise that he is the perfect person to become immortalized in this new animated avatar,” added Graphic’s Co-Founder & CEO Sharad Devarajan. “The opportunity to collaborate with Bachchan on ‘Astra Force’ is made that much stronger by partnering with Disney, a company whose creativity and storytelling I have admired all my life.”

    Disney Channel India has been entertaining kids and families through a range of locally relevant stories spread across high-quality animation series and “Astra Force” will be the perfect complement to the line-up of existing shows.

    Devarajan is the producer on “Astra Force” along with Graphic India SVP-Creative Jeevan J. Kang who is overseeing visual development character design and art for the project.

    Graphic’s previous animated superhero, Chakra The Invincible, was created with Stan Lee (co-creator of Spider-Man, Iron Man and The Avengers) and received over 30 million views globally on Rovio’s ToonsTV platform available through the Angry Birds app.

    Graphic India is a character entertainment company focused on creating leading characters, comics and stories through mobile and digital platforms. Founded by media entrepreneurs Devarajan, Gotham Chopra and Suresh Seetharaman, it is owned by the U.S. comic book company, Liquid Comics and CA Media LP, the Asian investment arm of The Chernin Group, LLC (TCG).

  • Disney brings Graphic’s ‘Astra Force’ on Big B’s birthday

    Disney brings Graphic’s ‘Astra Force’ on Big B’s birthday

    MUMBAI: Graphic India and Disney Channel India will reveal the first look of its superhero series Astra Force on the occasion of Amitabh Bachchan’s birthday – 11th October as a special surprise for the millions of megastar’s fans around the world.

    In the month of August last year, Graphic and Disney announced the production of the animated series -“Astra Force.” with legendary icon, Bachchan. A funny and fast-paced, action-adventure series, filled with laughs and thrills, “Astra Force” tells the story of a mythical hero from a distant world, who was stranded on th earth millions of years ago after an epic space battle.

    When 8-year old brother and sister twins accidentally awaken the mythical superhero from his long hibernation, they must teach him about our modern world and join Astra to save the universe from a new wave of giant monsters and intergalactic threats.

    “At the heart of everything we do at Disney is tell great stories and we tell them in a manner that our audiences that can relate with. We have been building on our local animation slate on Disney Channel; offering content and content that kids have come to love and now with Astra Force, we are extremely happy to have partnered with Sharad and Mr. Bachchan to bring in another interesting facet to storytelling in this space, said Disney India VP – content and communications, media networks, Vijay Subramaniam.

    “Amitabh Bachchan is a real life superhero to millions, including myself, so it’s no surprise that he is the perfect person to become immortalized in this new animated avatar,” added Graphic’s Co-Founder & CEO Sharad Devarajan. “The opportunity to collaborate with Bachchan on ‘Astra Force’ is made that much stronger by partnering with Disney, a company whose creativity and storytelling I have admired all my life.”

    Disney Channel India has been entertaining kids and families through a range of locally relevant stories spread across high-quality animation series and “Astra Force” will be the perfect complement to the line-up of existing shows.

    Devarajan is the producer on “Astra Force” along with Graphic India SVP-Creative Jeevan J. Kang who is overseeing visual development character design and art for the project.

    Graphic’s previous animated superhero, Chakra The Invincible, was created with Stan Lee (co-creator of Spider-Man, Iron Man and The Avengers) and received over 30 million views globally on Rovio’s ToonsTV platform available through the Angry Birds app.

    Graphic India is a character entertainment company focused on creating leading characters, comics and stories through mobile and digital platforms. Founded by media entrepreneurs Devarajan, Gotham Chopra and Suresh Seetharaman, it is owned by the U.S. comic book company, Liquid Comics and CA Media LP, the Asian investment arm of The Chernin Group, LLC (TCG).

  • Big B to promote using city compost produced from municipal solid waste in new campaign

    Big B to promote using city compost produced from municipal solid waste in new campaign

    NEW DELHI: The Urban Development Ministry plans to promote the initiative of using City Compost produced from municipal solid waste.

    This will be done through a multi-platform communication campaign commencing soon featuring megastar Amitabh Bachchan.

    In this context, Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu who also holds the Information and Broadcasting portfolio spoke to Bachchan to convey his gratitude for agreeing to be the face of the Ministry’s new communication campaign.

    Bachchan is expected to appeal to all citizens, nursery owners and horticulture agencies to pledge to use only city compost in their gardens, farm houses and public gardens.

    Additionally, he will be making an appeal to bulk waste generators like educational institutions and hotels to set up decentralized composting equipment in their respective premises and encourage the citizens to segregate organic waste for further composting.

    India currently produces over 1.54 lakh Metric Tonne of solid waste per day, 50% of which comprises of organic waste that can be converted into compost & gas; 30% is inorganic waste, which can be converted into energy. India has the potential to produce 54 lakh Metric Tonne of compost per annum from waste. Compost, produced organically from waste, are free of harmful chemicals and serve to provide carbon and primary / secondary nutrients to soil and increases its water retention capacity. Composting imitates nature’s way of rebuilding soil by encouraging the decomposition of organic substances. Besides being the cheapest method of disposing organic wastes, composting is eco-friendly, since it prevents production of harmful greenhouse gases (especially methane) and toxic material that pollutes groundwater apart from polluting the environment.

  • Big B to promote using city compost produced from municipal solid waste in new campaign

    Big B to promote using city compost produced from municipal solid waste in new campaign

    NEW DELHI: The Urban Development Ministry plans to promote the initiative of using City Compost produced from municipal solid waste.

    This will be done through a multi-platform communication campaign commencing soon featuring megastar Amitabh Bachchan.

    In this context, Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu who also holds the Information and Broadcasting portfolio spoke to Bachchan to convey his gratitude for agreeing to be the face of the Ministry’s new communication campaign.

    Bachchan is expected to appeal to all citizens, nursery owners and horticulture agencies to pledge to use only city compost in their gardens, farm houses and public gardens.

    Additionally, he will be making an appeal to bulk waste generators like educational institutions and hotels to set up decentralized composting equipment in their respective premises and encourage the citizens to segregate organic waste for further composting.

    India currently produces over 1.54 lakh Metric Tonne of solid waste per day, 50% of which comprises of organic waste that can be converted into compost & gas; 30% is inorganic waste, which can be converted into energy. India has the potential to produce 54 lakh Metric Tonne of compost per annum from waste. Compost, produced organically from waste, are free of harmful chemicals and serve to provide carbon and primary / secondary nutrients to soil and increases its water retention capacity. Composting imitates nature’s way of rebuilding soil by encouraging the decomposition of organic substances. Besides being the cheapest method of disposing organic wastes, composting is eco-friendly, since it prevents production of harmful greenhouse gases (especially methane) and toxic material that pollutes groundwater apart from polluting the environment.

  • Celebrity led-VOD platform Wakau ropes in Big B, Tendulkar & others as contributors

    Celebrity led-VOD platform Wakau ropes in Big B, Tendulkar & others as contributors

    MUMBAI: CA Media Digital and Jetsynthesys have jointly launched their first of its kind, freemium celebrity video blogging app called Wakau in India.

    The app, which allows users to access unseen candid celeb moments to help them connect further with their favourite stars and celebs, was launched by Amitabh Bachchan.

    Apart from Bachchan, Wakau has also roped in celebs like Sachin Tendulkar, Arjun Kapoor, Ayushmann Khurrana, Nirahua, Shaan, Manju Warrier, Tamannaah Bhatia, Sophie Choudry, Arman Malik and Elli Avaram, who will contribute to the platform.

    The app will upload new content including landmark moments from the celebs lives, hobbies and interests and career stories, for subscribers on a daily basis. On Wakau, fans can watch, share and comment on a variety of videos categorised topically and by celebrity. The app, has a celebrity interface feature that enables celebs to upload premium video content, while allowing them to track fan comments on their videos and respond directly.

    Talking about his association with Wakau, Bachchan said, “Social media is an integral part of my life today. I have always tried to stay connected with my fans and respond to them whenever possible through my blog and other social media platforms. I am glad to be associated with an interactive platform like Wakau, through which I can share some of my candid moments from my day to day life with my fans and inch closer to them.”

    Freely downloadable to users across India, this freemium app allows consumers to view celebrity videos for free, with the videos being interspersed with advertisements. The app also supports an ad-free experience via its subscription service.

    CA Media India EVP operations Rishi Negi said, “Wakau is a great opportunity for celebrities to connect with their fans and share personal stories, interests, sepia moments and cherished thoughts through their video blogs. The app is a celebrity hotspot that enables consumers to gain easy access to insightful videos of their favourite superstars and personal heroes on their phones.”

    Jetsynthesys vice chairman and managing director Rajan Navani added, “Through constant and continuous innovation we at Jetsynthesys strive to offer the best in digital technology and Wakau is no exception. With a deep focus on creating a personal connect with the consumer through leveraging analytics, the Wakau experience will eventually pave the way towards many firsts for the world. We are excited to launch this unique world class Indian product that would become the social digital media screen of the 21st century.”

  • Comic maestro Mehmood gave Big B his first break in Bollywood!

    Comic maestro Mehmood gave Big B his first break in Bollywood!

    MUMBAI: After three insightful episodes on Classic Legends Season 3, the popular show is all set to showcase its fourth episode which is dedicated to screen icon and comic genius – Mehmood. Traditionally hosted by the living legend – Javed Akhtar himself, the show provides its viewers a sneak peek into the lives of some of the best talents from the golden era of Indian Cinema.

     

    Javed Akhtar dishes out details on how Mehmood was not just multi-faceted himself but had an eye for spotting talent.The story goes that when Amitabh Bachchan was trying to mark in the Indian Film industry, Mehmood was one of the first people to recognise the potential talent in Amitabh Bachchan. Mehmood saab was so confident about the talent that Amitabh possessed that he offeredhim his first break in the movie ‘Bombay to Goa’.

    Apart from possessing the knack of spotting true talent, Mehmood saab also had a strong passion for good music. He always sang in his movies and all his songs became tremendously popular because he was able to strike the right emotional chord in the heart of the audience with his mesmerizing voice.

     

    Tune-in to Classic Legends as Javed Akhtar provides viewers with a glimpse into the life of the king of comedy-Mehmood on Sunday, 23 November at 8pm only on Zee Classic!

     

  • The Angry Young Man of Bollywood turns 72

    The Angry Young Man of Bollywood turns 72

    MUMBAI: Megastar Amitabh Bachchan, who turns 72 today, feels there’s no gift greater than spending time with family. The actor, who feels ‘luckiest today’ thanked all who have been in his life.

    “To them that wish for me for my 72nd moving into 73rd…I have just few words…I am blessed to have you with me still! Thank you all for your affectionate greetings and love..they shall ever remain with me…I feel today the luckiest,” he tweeted early Saturday.

    “It is that time of life when the next year in celebration of the birth is never one that needs celebration….I have none answer to the why, but so it is…I do not feel any different from this and never shall,” added the entertainer, who has been part of the Indian showbiz for over four decades now.

    Born on 1942, he started his career with Saat Hindustani. His early works were not appreciated. His rise to stardom started when Director Prakash Mehra cast him in the leading role for the film Zanjeer (1973) as Inspector Vijay Khanna. The film was a sharp contrast to the romantically themed films that had generally preceded it and established Amitabh in a new persona—the ‘angry young man’ of Bollywood cinema.

    He has appeared in more than 180 movies in his whole life span and created his own heights of success. His career started with Saat Hindustani in which he also made a debut as a narrator.

    Besides a number of Filmfare awards, he has been honoured by the Government of India with the Padma Shri award in 1984 and Padma Bhushan in 2001 for his utmost contributions to the film industry. He has also received National Film award, France’s highest civilian honour, the Knight of the Legion of Honour, among other recognitions.

    His notable works include Kabhie Kabhie,  Deewar, Chupke Chupke, Mr. Natwarlal, Kaala Patthar and The Great Gambler, Satte Pe Satta, Lawaris, Sarkar, KAbhi Khushi Kabhi Gam, Sholay, Anand among others.

     “…it is not a day to contemplate…it is a time to deliver thanks and gratefulness to all those that have been responsible for my 72 in completion and my 73 to begin,” posted Big B.

    Every year, Amitabh Bachchan’s birthday is celebrated with much fervour by fans who gather outside his residence Jalsa to wish the superstar and if possible meet him. Big B too obliges the fans by stepping among them.