ITV

Tag: Sunny Singh.

  • Viacom18 packs a punch with ‘Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2’ marketing

    Viacom18 packs a punch with ‘Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2’ marketing

    MUMBAI: Pyar Ka Punchnama is all set to return with new twist. Viacom18 Motion Pictures has lined up a unique marketing campaign to promote the movie. Kick-starting the teaser with #DilKaJail standees across multiplexes pan India, the studio set the tone for a quirky yet relatable marketing campaign.

     

    Presented by Viacom18 Motion Pictures, Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 is produced by Abhishek Pathak and directed by Luv Ranjan. The movie will release on 16 October.

     

    Viacom18 Motion Pictures marketing VP Rudrarup Datta said, “Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 is a cult film that defies the norms of quintessential Bollywood love stories. The film needed a quirky, standout campaign that would connect to the youth and their ideologies of love and relationships and we are delighted with the response we have received thus far.”

     

    An interesting campaign was done by the filmmakers where cinema patrons went behind the bars, jailed by the heart and clicked funky selfies and group pictures. This was facilitated across metros and mini metros. Driving the quirk in the campaign, human banners with the tagline ‘Love is Injurious to Health’ were created and volunteers went and photo-bombed couples at various lover’s points across 10 cities.

     

    Moreover, as the Pyaar Ka Punchnama monologue has gone viral across platforms, in an attempt to extend the idea of the monologue to the common man, an on ground contest activation was conceptualised wherein the most Pyaar mein Pareshaan boy gets a chance to win a trip to Bangkok after a successful recitation of a heated monologue.

     

    Using radio and the digital platform as mediums, this campaign engaged people across the nation. Taking the campaign a notch higher in the release week, a Mohabbat Mukti Morcha was organised where a horde of people assembled in Juhu. From witty one liner hand posters that said Jaanu mujhe jaane do to the burning of a 3ft teddy bear – all the cliché romantic symbols that lead to false expectations in a relationship were protested against. Leading this movement were the lead actors of the film including Kartik Aaryan, Omkar Kapoor and Sunny Singh.

  • ‘We share cordial relations with the BCCI’ : Kings XI Punjab co-owner Mohit Burman

    ‘We share cordial relations with the BCCI’ : Kings XI Punjab co-owner Mohit Burman

    Amid controversies surrounding shareholding issues and a termination notice from the BCCI, the spirit of Kings XI Punjab hasn‘t dampened. The Indian Premier League franchise expects to break-even this year as it targets a 15–20 per cent increase from all revenue channels.

     

    Though the drama off the field and the court proceedings caused damage to the brand, Kings XI Punjab has fought back and managed to retain four of its existing sponsors.

     

    In an interview with Indiantelevision.com’s Ashwin Pinto, Kings XI Punjab co-owner Mohit Burman talks about the hard times the franchise had to go through while staying on course to turn profitable.

     

    Excerpts:

    The BCCI had terminated its IPL contract with Kings XI Punjab and now the team is back. What is the current relationship with the BCCI?
    We share cordial relations with the BCCI. After all, it is in both our interests to run the league smoothly.

    What was the argument that you made in court over the BCCI‘s abrupt termination?
    The BCCI had a certain opinion about the shareholding structure of the company, which was factually incorrect. The court in its interim order has accepted our position on the issue.

    Amid all the controversies including the one for overseas broadcast rights, are you concerned that the IPL‘s brand value might take a hit?
    Brand IPL has only been growing these past three years. We believe that this will further grow with each passing season.

    Does the BCCI need to adopt a more inclusive approach and involve franchises when it takes big decisions?
    The BCCI and franchisees form the IPL. Hence, it is only right that both engage with each other in the best interests of the league.

    There are now 74 matches as opposed to 94 envisioned earlier. What impact will this have on your revenue?
    Each franchise shall still play 14 games at the league stage. I do not, therefore, see any great impact on revenues. We are confident of breaking even this year.
    ‘Though there are 74 matches as opposed to 94 envisioned earlier, there will not be any great impact on revenues. Each franchise shall still play 14 games at the league stage. We are confident of breaking even this year‘

    Some feel that the BCCI should not have added two new franchises. Do you agree?
    I don‘t see 10 teams as problem. It was always known that two new teams would be added in 2010.

     

    Yuvraj and Mahela are match winners in their own right and we did try to bring both of them back into our team. But after a point, the costs for individual players affect the composition of the team. At the end of the day, one has to formulate a team vis a vis spending the bulk of our purse on individual players. We have added 12 uncapped players including Nitin Saini, Sunny Singh, Siddharth Chitnis and Paul Valthaty.

    How would you describe the progress that Kings XI Punjab has made over the past three seasons of the IPL?
    We have come a long way since the first auction when nobody was sure if this format would work at all. Over the past three years, we have seen a number of ups and downs.
    The first season was a good season for us from a cricketing perspective as we reached the semifinal, but then we slipped and our performance has been below par in the last two seasons. But with the learning’s from the previous seasons, we have now worked out a very balanced cricket team under an IPL winning captain – Adam Gilchrist. We strongly believe that our new team has the potential to win the IPL and make all our fans and supporters very proud of us. With three seasons behind us, we have only learnt more and understood how the business of sport and entertainment works. We are now in a better position to plan and execute effectively with clear objectives.

    What have the key learnings been?
    The IPL is a very interesting product as its gets cricketers from across cultures who have always played against each other but are now playing in the same team. Hence, we have realised that the success of the team depends on how well the team gels together and plays as one unit while understanding each other’s limitations and strengths.

     

    From a brand perspective, IPL team fans were initially excited about the cricket stars in each team. However with our efforts over the last few years and even going forward, we are trying to position Kings XI Punjab as the prime product and have the fans support the team rather than the stars in it.

     

    Over the last three seasons, we have had partners who have stood by us and believed in brand Kings XI Punjab. For the coming season, we have renewed four of our partners (Emirates is the Title sponsor while Reebok is the Official Apparel Partner, USL is Official Games for Challenge Partner and Wrigley is the Official Chewing Gum) as we believe that long term associations is where the value in sport sponsorship lies.

    How hard has it been to get the sponsors on board after all the controversies Kings XI Punjab went through?
    It is fair to say that the happenings off the field initially had an effect on the perception of the sponsors to a certain extent.

     

    However, the fact that four of our existing sponsors have signed again with us should indicate the trust and faith that sponsors have in us as a franchise and the value that they see in associating with us. You shall soon hear of many more sponsors coming on board with us for the coming seasons.

    Is it just money that you are looking for or are there other parameters?
    We are a group of friends who invested in this venture as all of us are passionate about sport in general and cricket in particular. We also saw value in this model as a business proposition.

    What revenue growth are you eyeing this year?
    We are looking at a 15–20 per cent increase on all revenue channels across the board.

    Two new franchises means more clutter for advertisers. How do you see things playing out in terms of brand recall?
    All the teams are assigned Catchment Areas and Bases. This should take care of the brand recall to an extent. We have invested time, effort and money into building brand loyalty,
    which is the hallmark of our franchise. We value our association with our fans and are grateful to them for standing solidly behind the franchise at all times.

     

    It is also very important to realise that sponsors come into the IPL market with their own set of objectives and plans. Some brands use this platform just as a branding exercise while others rely on activities around the team and players.

     

    The TRPs of the IPL in the past three years have been more than impressive as it is the biggest sporting property in the country.

    What initiatives are you planning for to build fan connect this year?
    We are looking at increasing our fan base by conducting activities for the Lion‘s Den, which is our Fan Club. These would be online through our website and on ground activities in our catchment areas of Punjab, Haryana, HP and J&K.

     

    Fans can win tickets, merchandise and also get to meet and train with the team. You will see all this happening in the lead time to the season and even during the off season.
    In the past you have been careful about marketing expenses due to the economic climate. Will these expenses be reduced further this year?
    We have budgeted for what is required to meet our marketing objectives.

    What strategy are you looking at to build the licensing and merchandising side of the business?
    The licensing and merchandising market is still at a nascent stage in India. Unlike a traditional and regular licensing and merchandising programme, we have had to create a plan according to the market needs.

     

    While we have licensed our team kit to Reebok, we have also identified other partners for sole merchandising. We have signed up a specialist partner who shall represent us in the licensing space. We shall be making announcements about the same in the days to come.
    Is Kings XI Punjab looking for a CEO?
    We are not looking for a CEO. Arvinder Singh heads the management team as the COO.

    Are you interested in being involved in other sports?
    The IPL has changed the way sport is successfully run in India and as part of the IPL, we are in a good position to help develop other sports.

     

    We have always said that we are a community-driven team and one of our core objectives is to give back to sports. Hence, as and when feasible and excitable projects come along, we shall take a call at that time.
  • Radio Mirchi in film placement for Honeymoon Travels

    Radio Mirchi in film placement for Honeymoon Travels

    MUMBAI: In its latest on ground activity for a film, Radio Mirchi brought the star couples of the soon to be released film Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd face to face with eight couples who participated in a Mirchi contest where they narrated their most hilarious honeymoon experiences.

    The stars and the eight couples travelled on the ‘honeymoon travels bus’ from Hilton Towers to Salt Water Grill in Mumbai.

    Radio Mirchi also features in the film along with RJ Harsh who plays a radio jockey called Sunny Singh in the film who hosts a show called ‘Pyar Ke Lamhe’. RJ Harsh hosts the morning show on Mirchi called Hello Mumbai.

    The director of the film Reema Kagti revealed, “We need a narrator or a sutradhar for the film. A voice that could discuss individual characters, reveal secrets about them and their past in the movie. I first heard Harsh’s voice while I was stuck in a never-ending traffic jam on the streets of Mumbai. At that time I was searching for a voice to dub for the character of the RJ. His voice was perfect for the part and I immediately decided to use him as the sutradhar and the voice on the radio show called ‘Pyaar ke Lamhe’ in the movie.”

    Speaking at the event producer of Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd Ritesh Sidhwani said, “In the competitive environment that we operate in, we are constantly seeking novel ways to promote our movies. We have to take the movie to the audiences and we were convinced that the best way to reach them is through Radio Mirchi and taking our stars to their listeners. We came up with this wonderful idea to utilize one of our key characters and our set – the star bus to drive around the streets of Mumbai.”

    Radio Mirchi station director and vice president Mumbai Hitesh Sharma said, “Radio Mirchi has always strived to connect with listeners through out-of-the-box content and on-ground promotions. Radio Mirchi has been the exclusive radio partner for several other blockbuster movies in the past. We have become the preferred choice for producers as our content is innovative and we have the widest reach.”

    Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd is a film about six couples, a guide, a driver and a handyman riding in a bus from Bombay to Goa. Woven into the hectic four day honeymoon schedule is the radio show – “Pyaar Ke Lamhe”.

    Radio Mirchi is the exclusive radio partner for the film which stars Shabana Azmi, Boman Irani, Kay Kay Menon, Raima Sen, Minnisha Lamba, Karan Khanna and Sandhya Mridul and director Reema Kagti accompanied by producers Farhaan Akhtar, Ritesh Sidhwani and Zoya Akhtar.