Mahindra, in collaboration with agency FCB, has launched an unconventional campaign called “The Mahindra Pothole Test Drive.” Instead of avoiding the city’s pothole-ridden roads, the campaign uses them as a real-world test of the vehicle’s performance. At the centre of the campaign is the new Thar ROXX, a 5-door SUV designed to combine off-road capability with everyday comfort for families and urban drivers.
Known for causing frustration among drivers, Mumbai’s potholes are now being used to showcase Mahindra vehicles’ suspension, durability, and handling. The campaign positions the pothole challenge as an opportunity to demonstrate how the cars perform in tough, everyday driving conditions.
Earlier campaigns for the Mahindra Thar ROXX, including “THE SUV” and a teaser featuring a rock track, focused on positioning the 5-door SUV as both rugged and family-friendly. These efforts aimed to expand its appeal beyond off-road enthusiasts to a wider urban audience. The Mahindra Thar ROXX is more spacious and feature-rich version of the original 3-door Thar. While the Thar is geared toward off-road enthusiasts, the ROXX adds everyday comfort and practicality, making it suitable for both adventure and family use.
This initiative marks a shift from traditional test drives and highlights Mahindra’s focus on practical performance over ideal driving environments.
In a campaign designed to highlight the capabilities of its Thar ROXX SUV, Mahindra and creative agency FCB have turned Mumbai’s pothole-ridden streets into a deliberate test route.
Using Google Maps and urban planning data, the team identified the worst pothole clusters within a 5-kilometre radius of a Mahindra showroom. These routes are now being used to test the vehicle's 4x4 performance, suspension, and comfort in challenging urban conditions.
The campaign is part of Mahindra’s broader strategy to demonstrate how its vehicles handle real-world Indian roads rather than controlled test environments.
The campaign is rolling out across social media, and digital platforms inviting the people of Mumbai to experience what it really means to drive a Mahindra — on all terrains.
Anusheela Saha, national creative director and head of design at FCB Neo (part of FCB India) commented: “Some ideas don't just come from a brief — they come from the city itself. The potholes were staring at us, quite literally. And what better way to showcase Mahindra's capability than turning an everyday frustration into a badge of honour? This storytelling is as real as the roads we drive on.”
Mohamed Bareche, executive creative director at Horizon FCB Dubai, added: “To demonstrate the real-life readiness of ‘The’ SUV, we had to put it to the ultimate test. But that didn’t mean taking it off-road– it meant taking it to the streets. Only Mahindra’s Thar could take on the roads of Mumbai and prove that not even potholes will stand in the way of an Unstoppable Adventurer.”
Credit list:
Brand: Mahindra
Agency: FCB India & Horizon FCB Dubai
Global Creative Partner: Danilo Boer
Global Executive Creative Producer: John Bleeden
Group CEO, FCB Group India & South Asia: Dheeraj Sinha
Chief Executive Officer: Gaurav Dudeja
Chief Executive Officer, Horizon FCB Dubai: Mazen Jawad
Managing Director, Horizon FCB Dubai: Reham Mufleh
National Creative Director & Head of Design: Anusheela Saha
National Creative Director: Udayan Chakravarthy
Executive creative director: Mohamed Bareche, Horizon FCB Dubai
Account Management: Karuna Nayak, Vinid Venugopalan
Creative Team: Thomas Nicolae Gheorghiu, Antonio Cué, Marcos Becker, Bassam Ehab
Production House: Another Idea
Director: Lloyd Baptista
Producer: Gaurav Gandhi
Cinematography: Sai Sharon
Music: Siddharth Chopra
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