Spinny, full-stack used car platform, has launched its first national marketing campaign with the brand promise of “Khushiyon Ki Long Drive”. Highlighting the brand’s vision to turn the car buying and ownership journey into a simple and delightful experience, the ads feature Sachin Tendulkar and PV Sindhu. Conceptualised by Spring Marketing Capital, the campaign encapsulates the joy of adding a personal car in the journey of life.

Over the past few years, pre-owned car sales have witnessed an increase in momentum, gaining traction especially from young Indians in top cities. On the back of factors like greater value for money and wider choice of vehicles available in near-mint condition on full-stack digital platforms, pre-owned cars are steadily gaining popularity, Spinny said in a press statement.

In this campaign which comprises two films, Sachin Tendulkar and PV Sindhu, representing Spinny, provide assurance to a family who are about to buy their first car while the family gets advice from neighbours, relatives – pretty much what happens when a family decides to buy their first car.

The film also strategically encapsulates Spinny’s full stack features that contribute to creating a seamless vehicle purchasing journey including online research and test drives from home. The finalized car is then delivered at their doorstep – signifying the start of their Khushiyon Ki Long Drive.

Elaborating on the campaign, Suvid Bajaj, Head of Marketing – Spinny, said, “It was a memorable experience to work with our brand ambassadors Sachin Tendulkar and PV Sindhu on this campaign. Sachin is our strategic investor as well and he was fully involved with our idea. The idea of our campaign is to strike a chord with the young buyers and their life journey. Through this campaign we wanted to highlight the joyous story of millions of buyers, who work hard, save bit by bit and then invest in a car of their own. With Spinny’s strong focus and positive response to services, a film with PV Sindhu will be released as part of this campaign as well. Sindhu is deeply involved with Spinny as she started out as our customer and now of course a captain of Squad Spinny.”

Speaking about his involvement in the campaign, Sachin Tendulkar said, “Our country is becoming younger and our ambitions bigger. I am very happy to be associated with Spinny – a team which aspires to create solutions the right way. The team has adopted timeless values to achieve excellence in their business – trust, transparency, and integrity. This is one such story of a family on the start of their Khushiyon ki long drive with Spinny.

Mrinmoy Mukherjee, CEO, SRT Sports Management (organisation managing Sachin Tendulkar), said, “Throughout this journey, we wish to bring to life several interesting stories of human aspirations. Khushiyon Ki Long Drive is just the beginning”.

Arun Iyer, CCO, Spring marketing, said, “Buying their first car is one of the most exciting journeys for a family. We have attempted to weave a relatable story of a family starting their aspirational journey with their first car, while also informing our viewers why Spinny is the best destination for a used car purchase. Having Sachin Tendulkar narrate the film brought a feeling of trust and reassurance to it, and we hope that our viewers love our campaign as much as we do.”

The digital campaign will run via Spinny’s own social and YouTube channels along with a strong presence across other digital platforms. It will also be aired during the upcoming IPL 2022 on Disney+Hotstar, with Spinny on board as the associate sponsor. In addition to this, the brand is working on a second ad with a similar storyline featuring a customer and brand ambassador PV Sindhu.

Ageas Federal Life Insurance has launched its #FutureFearless campaign with brand ambassador Sachin Tendulkar. The #FutureFearless campaign was conceptualised and created in partnership with VMLY&R India. It is a digital-led campaign using social media platforms, influencer pages, and different digital media like OTT platforms and news sites. “Our aim through this campaign is to use Tendulkar’s example to encourage parents to wisely plan for their children’s future. We are going through uncertain times but with financial discipline and timely investment in life insurance, parents can help fulfil the fearless dreams of their children,” Karthik Raman, chief marketing officer and head, Products, Ageas Federal Life Insurance said.

The film for the campaign uses deep fake AI video regeneration technology to recreate an 11-year-old Tendulkar. In the film, a young Sachin Tendulkar records a message for his older self on being fearless despite the hurdles of the world. At the end of the film, referring to his own childhood experiences, he urges parents not to fear the future but to prepare for it. The campaign aims to encourage timely investment in life insurance to liberate parents from financial limitations and help them to plan for a future for their children.

The company wanted an inspiring figure to convince parents to overcome their fears with better financial planning from Ageas Federal Life Insurance, and who better than the 11-year-old Sachin Tendulkar; Mukund Olety, chief creative officer, VMLY&R India, stated. “While we knew this was something we could achieve using technologies such as deepfake AI, unfortunately, we didn’t have any pre-existing videos of him as a child. Instead of letting that stop us, we found our way through custom tech innovations. We recorded the adult Sachin Tendulkar and de-aged his voice to make sure it had realistic notes and nuances, things people recognise about him today,” he added.

The campaign is created from the #FutureFearless survey conducted by Ageas Federal Life Insurance with YouGov India, which examined the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the financial preparedness of Indian parents in planning for their children’s education, career and other life goals. As per the survey, after addressing medical needs, saving for their children’s future emerged as the one of the top priorities for parents, between the pandemic-led forced cut down on savings and investments. Life insurance emerged as one of the top preferences for parents when saving or investing for the long-term goals of their children.

Stalwarts from different fields will conduct curated lessons on their subjects of expertise

Edtech unicorn Unacademy has launched a new learning product called ‘Unacademy Icons’, where stalwarts from different fields such as sports, arts, business and leadership, will conduct curated lessons on their subjects of expertise.

The first Icons segment, ‘Cricket with Sachin’ , has been developed in collaboration with cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. He will mentor Unacademy Learners through a series of 31 interactive lessons of over seven hours. The curriculum is co-created by Sachin Tendulkar and his brother Ajit Tendulkar.

Speaking to BusinessLine about the vision behind Unacademy Icons, Gaurav Munjal, Co-founder and CEO, Unacademy Group, said: “Unacademy always wanted to democratise knowledge. The founders of Unacademy have been YouTubers since 2010. We were in college when we started teaching on YouTube and the initial idea of why unacademy came into existence was that we knew something that others did not. There was that information arbitrage and that made us realise that if we can get the best in the world to teach something, that will be very different from what you can learn from others.”

Munjal added that there will not be thousands of courses in every category, instead, in each category, the company will partner with the best icon in the world similar to how they have partnered with Sachin for the Cricket category. In future, Unacademy Icons also plans to introduce a few categories such as chess, how to become a YouTuber, and acting.

Pre-booking for Icons will start on February 23, for a subscription price of ₹299, with a one-year validity. The first 10 lessons will be launched on February 28 and subsequent 21 lessons will be released in the following weeks. The lessons will be available in English, Hindi to begin with, and will later be available in Marathi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil.

The course offers a variety of features such as in-show graphics and animations that make the lessons engaging and interactive. The course curriculum also offers quizzes between each chapter, which will act as notable benchmarks to test the Learner’s knowledge in their course journey.

Talking about the course structure and content, Sachin Tendulkar said: “ Whatever the way I have played and the way my brother has shared his thoughts with me over the years, we’ve tried to implement all those things in various chapters. Plus, I have shared a number of experiences from my international cricket days, and some of these experiences are from my childhood. So, the course is not only focussed on the beginners, it’s also for someone who’s been around for a while, or is a pro-level expert who knows how to play.”

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 16 (ANI): The legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar will continue as UNICEF‘s ‘Goodwill Ambassador’ for a record 20th year, working for the welfare of underprivileged children.

Sachin Tendulkar has been associated with global causes for many years. He has been consistently active in batting for the good of underprivileged children. Sachin’s individual, as well as collaborative efforts towards health, education & sports initiatives for children, has been commendable.

Honouring his relentless efforts to voice for the rights of children, UNICEF has extended their partnership for a record 20th year.

In a tweet reply, Sachin said, “It’s been great working with UNICEF all these years. Wonderful memories of the impactful work the team has executed. The efforts towards giving wings to children’s dreams are very satisfying. Looking forward to our next phase of the partnership. @UNICEFROSA @G_LaryeaAdjei.”

Sachin has been associated with UNICEF for long for various causes. In 2003, he was chosen to take lead in the initiative to create awareness about polio and promote polio prevention in India. Later in 2008, he was roped in to create and promote hygiene and sanitation among communities and has been continuing to do so over the years. In 2013, he was appointed UNICEF Ambassador for South Asia to advocate for good hygiene and sanitation across the region.

With the Government of India launching the Swachh Bharat Mission, Sachin extended his role to lead the Team Swachh Bharat campaign for UNICEF in India. This campaign reached every nook and corner of the country.

He was awarded the “Most Effective Swachh Bharat Ambassador” award by the President of India during an awards function in 2020. Sachin has been vocal through these campaigns about the importance of washing hands before meals and sanitizing after defecation, primarily aimed at teaching children the basics of cleanliness.

Over the years, Sachin has been to many remote places to interact with underprivileged children, empower girls to take up sports, and to launch many projects for their welfare. His visit to the Ratnagiri district in the western state of Maharashtra to interact with the visually challenged boys and girls staying at a residential school, his visit to remote areas of Madhya Pradesh to interact with underprivileged kids are few of the examples.

In 2019, he went on a three-day trip to Nepal to raise awareness for UNICEF Nepal’s ‘Bat for Brain Development’ campaign. These are but a few examples of the continuous humanitarian efforts Sachin has been making through his association with UNICEF. These visits not only gave the campaign momentum but also gave people hope through the words of Sachin.

Being an inspiration and idol for many both on and off the field, Sachin Tendulkar has been a key influencer with his social work. In his almost two-decade-long partnership with UNICEF, he has been vital in furthering the campaigns, especially the ones aimed at children.

“One day, every child will be vaccinated against deadly diseases. One day, every child will have clean water.” – Sachin can be heard saying these lines in one of the promotional videos for UNICEF. Given the pandemic period we live in, and with UNICEF bestowing immense faith on Sachin for a record 20th year, the determination associated with these lines is set to grow stronger. (ANI)

~ A retrospection on Sachin Tendulkar’s non-endorsement of tobacco and liquor brands ~

“Tobacco consumption can be injurious to health” – one of the oft-seen and highly (mis)used disclaimers in the advertising world. Over the years, its effect on tobacco consumers had not been as it was expected to be. The Seventh Edition of the annual Tobacco Atlas, released by Vital Strategies and the Tobacconomics team at the University of Illinois at Chicago, suggests that there are 1.1 billion smokers and several hundred million users of other tobacco products in the world.

Another 2021 WHO report suggests that tobacco claims the lives of more than 8 million people each year, out of which, 7 million deaths are due to direct tobacco usage while around 1.2 million are the result of passive or second hand smoking. The same report suggests that over 80% of the world’s more than a billion tobacco users belong to low- and middle-income countries, which includes India and the other South Asian countries.

In this ever-concerning sphere of tobacco consumption, one of the factors that have been contributing hugely is the space of brand endorsement. Big tobacco and liquor brands have been at the forefront of indulging in sponsorship and celebrity endorsements to tempt the masses into using their products, for years. It was in the late-90s, when apart from sponsoring big award shows, world tobacco makers targeted the Indian sports industry as well and ventured into sponsoring events, leagues, and team kits.

Amidst this then-new and profit-making trend, one man that was undeterred was Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, the man who brought a revolution to Indian cricket and gave hope to billions of dreams. It was in the late-90s when big global tobacco brands entered the Indian market to sponsor the Indian men’s cricket team’s kit. While many from the team including senior players put the sponsors’ names and logos in their kits, Sachin refused and instead left his bat blank for about two years.

Considering how big brands paid for endorsements and how at that time, the salary of the cricketers was in the range of a meagre 15 thousand Rupees only, it was indeed a big and daring move by Sachin.

At the core of Sachin’s refusal to endorse tobacco and liquor brands is his promise to his father, but there is also an inherent virtue Sachin has carried all along throughout his career and beyond.

Sachin’s commitment to work for the underprivileged section, especially children, is quite evident through his decades-long involvement with UNICEF, and other key initiatives.

His commitment and vow to not endorse any tobacco and liquor products could not be shaken during the IPL as well, where he again refused to endorse any sponsors that deal with tobacco or liquor.
In today’s world, where the advertisers adopt various sly measures like surrogate advertising to promote their products, the onus is more on the celebrities or youth icons to choose their endorsements responsibly.

The recent controversy regarding the endorsement of a tobacco brand by a Bollywood star is one such example, where he had to tender a public apology later on.

The brand’s tagline itself has become a hit among people, especially the youth, resulting in scores of videos and memes floating around it on Social Media. This bears testimony to the impact celebrity endorsement can make on the youth.

In this regard, another shocking finding of the 7th Edition of the annual Tobacco Atlas can be pointed out, where it suggests that although there is a drop in the percentage of adult smokers from 22.6% in 2007 to 19.6% in 2019, the rate of smokers in the 13-15 age bracket is growing. This age denotes the teenagers who are more vulnerable to falling prey to tobacco consumption through advertisements.

When the celebrities that they look up to themselves promote the tobacco products through eye-catching advertisements, the risk of consumption surges. In one of its advisories, the World Health Organization (WHO) suggests for a comprehensive ban on both direct and indirect forms of advertising, sponsorship, or promotion of tobacco products, to reduce its consumption.

It is true that it is not easily possible to have a consensus among celebrities to not endorse any tobacco or liquor products, given the changing landscape of advertising and marketing. But it is also noteworthy that by standing true to his words and beliefs of not endorsing any such products that can harm someone, especially the youth, Sachin has been carrying on a silent revolution, in a way.

Countless of tobacco and liquor brands approached him over the years with multi-crore deals, but he chose his ideals over money, every time. He knows the worth of his public image and how his deeds can impact his admirers, and this self-awareness and determination uphold the dignity that his name carries.

For almost two decades now, Sachin has been selflessly associated with the UNICEF, and several other government as well as non-governmental initiatives to offer a better life to the underprivileged children, and to give wings to their dreams. In today’s fast-changing world, amidst all the other pandemics, tobacco consumption is considered another ‘epidemic’ that has been impacting billions of lives each year.

With this, as we celebrate World No Tobacco Day, one can only hope that the silent revolution Sachin has been leading by not endorsing any tobacco and liquor products, become a roaring revolution in times to come.