Aamir Khan endorses National Voter Motivation Campaign

Actor Aamir Khan and cricketer Rahul Dravid are among a host of celebrities who feature in a nationwide, multimedia campaign urging the nation's citizens to shake off apathy, step out of their homes and cast their vote during the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. The National Voter Motivation Campaign 2004 has been commissioned by the Bangalore-based Public Affairs Center (PAC), is a non-government, non-partisan, not-for-profit organization that advocates improved quality of public governance and policy matters.

PAC, in association with its Bangalore-based creative agency Brand-Comm, launched the campaign on March 19, 2004. The campaign, being aired across electronic media in the country, urges people to exercise their franchise through the message, ‘Vote Today, Don't Curse Tomorrow.' It uses images of common people who curse the system for the problems they face in daily life, and tells them that by not voting, they are only compounding the problem. Talking about what inspired the PAC to take up the cause, the agency says, "It is widely accepted that there is widespread disenchantment and apathy prevalent amongst urban voters in India today. The campaign was conceived with the intention of changing the psyche of the general public, using a slice-of-life advertising campaign depicting ordinary people."

And in Aamir and Dravid, both the agency and PAC found the right mix of attributes that could be associated with the National Voter Motivation Campaign 2004. Says Samuel Paul, chairman, PAC, "Aamir Khan is known for his integrity and professionalism, just like cricketer Rahul Dravid, who is also part of this campaign. Hence, he (Aamir) was the right choice for us to help propagate this message by urging people to be responsible citizens and exercise their franchise."

To which Pavan Padaki, director, creative and planning, Brand-Comm, adds, "We needed somebody who not only has mass appeal, but is also unbiased, and who could connect with the common man to get the message through. Aamir Khan fits this role perfectly, as he represents the aspirations of the masses, while being politically neutral. The honesty that he exudes with his on-screen and off-screen presence is truly endearing." As an aside, it must be said that the actor looks his patriotic best in the campaign, what with the long locks and a giant moustache that he has sported for his upcoming film based on the life of rebel soldier Mangal Pandey. © 2004 agencyfaqs!