SET Max builds up IPL pitch with new campaign

With the DLF Indian Premier League set to kick off from April 18th, the noise around the much awaited Twenty20 series has been getting louder by the day. SET Max which won the broadcast rights for the series for a ten year period, along with World Sports Group (WSG) for an estimated sum of $1.03 billion recently launched its high decibel television campaign. Titled Manoranjan ka baap, the TVC attempts to communicate the drama and hype built around the 44 day event in a way that manages to convey the scale of the event, albeit in a humorous way. The film revolves around the tale of a woman who is waiting for her husband to return home as she takes care of her twin sons. The entire village taunts her and her two sons about the absence of her husband. She firmly rebuts these taunts with her belief that her husband will return home one day. The taunts, however, build up to a point where the woman cannot take it anymore. Just as she decides to take her own life, her sons rush up to her saying that their father has returned and lead her to the television set, where the voice over says, “Aa gaya manoranjan ka baap. DLF Indian Premier League. Sirf Max par.’ According to T Gangadhar, vice president and head of marketing, SET Max, the core idea of positioning the IPL as the baap of all entertainment shows originated from the time of their bid document. He added, “From a broadcaster’s perspective, the path before us was clear. We had to be the ultimate destination for the television viewer. With the share for eyeballs on prime time getting increasingly fragmented, the IPL is going to be pitched against the GECs. The way the IPL is being packaged, we expect an entirely new dimension to cricket viewership. Serious cricket is being played but it is being packaged to appeal to the whole family. The viewership patterns for the last Twenty20 series showed that the format is extremely sticky among women and children. Now with Bollywood stars owning regional Leagues and being part of the action, the IPL promises to be a nice melting pot of the best that cricket and Bollywood has to offer.” The TV campaign has been directed by Rajesh Krishnan of Soda Films and will be supported by TV, cinema, radio, Internet and on ground initiatives.