Mumbai Mirror speaks louder

Four stories, four protagonists with a megaphone in their hands, aggression in their stride, and anger in their expressions echo 'I am Mumbai'! This is what greets you when you view the new TVC of Mumbai Mirror.

Tale of a city

Page 11, October 2, 2010: Recall the angst of author Rohinton Mistry, as copies of his novel 'Such A Long Journey' is burnt by the Shiv Sena on the roads of Mumbai. "They burned my book, they burned my words, but they never will be able to silence my voice," cries out Mistry from the pages of MM.

Page 12, September 29, 2011: The story of a frustrated mother, who holds an audience captive with her account of milk adulteration. Mumbai Mirror stumbles upon a network of crooks who adulterate milk in tankers which belong to the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).

Page 7, August 23, 2010: "Our bed is smaller than a table, and we get to eat only two twice a week, and excrete at the same place we eat," says a feeble young boy to spectators in a government office. This sequence is in the light of the newspaper's coverage of the horrific abuse of malnourished children at an orphanage in the city.

For some time, Mumbai Mirror has been bringing out a series of exposes. The objective of the campaign is to underline the fact that every citizen, rich or poor, oppressed or cheated, has a voice that reaches out to the citizens every morning.

Elucidates Rahul Kansal, chief marketing officer, Bennett Coleman and Co., "The thought behind the campaign is that in a city where the ordinary guy can feel rather helpless and is at the receiving end of an insensitive system, the paper empowers the reader and gives him/her a voice."

Speaking about the black-and-white texture of the TVC, Kansal says that it is to give the entire ad a documentary-like feel. "The TVC depicts the fact that Mumbai Mirror is a brand with a strong tabloid attitude, and a crusader in its own right."

Mumbai Mirror is on television for the second time since its launch. The ads will run on the bouquet of channels by BCCL. The ads will be aired on some other news channels, as well.

In addition to TV, the ad will be played in cinema halls across the city. A print campaign will be carried forward in the company's group publications functional in Mumbai. These publications include Mumbai Mirror, The Times of India, and Maharashtra Times.

"We have fictionalised the protagonists and have depicted how Mumbai Mirror has given them a voice," explains Agnello Dias, co-founder and chief creative officer, Taproot India.

The production house for the campaign is Ramesh Deo Productions, and the TVC is directed by Abhinay Deo. The music has been provided by Ram Sampath.

Interestingly, this is not the first time that the slogan 'I am Mumbai' has been associated with the city. A quirky number from the Javed Jaffrey starrer Bombay Boys, had an entire track based on the slogan.

Recalling the track, Arun Iyer, national creative director, Lowe Lintas, feels that the TVC has used it in an interesting manner. Iyer loves the way the TVC is shot. "It is quite hard-hitting. Mumbai Mirror does echo the voice of Mumbai, but at the same time, it is also a fun newspaper. People voice their opinion through this newspaper."

Ramanuj Shastry, chief creative officer, Saatchi & Saatchi India, too, feels that it is a striking TVC. "It is a powerful creative, and will strike a connect with the citizens. It has a high emotive quotient." He feels that the metaphor of a megaphone for a newspaper is a brilliant one as a newspaper's job is to echo its reader's voice.