Swiggy comes out in support of restaurants; tells us to step out

With the nation cautiously reopening after 76 days of lockdown, several restaurants and cafes have started the process of getting back on their feet. Swiggy has released an ad urging customers to support their favourite restaurants by dining out or ordering from them. The ad acknowledges how long the wait has been and how this is the right time for people to start visiting restaurants.

The ad calls for the support that these restaurants and cafes seek from their patrons, who will think twice before walking in like they used to.

While this sort of messaging from a food delivery brand may seem counterintuitive at first, it reminds us that ultimately, brands like Swiggy will thrive only if their restaurant partners do. Sure delivery players like Swiggy and Zomato have built their businesses around the ordering in - as opposed to eating out - habit, now things have changed.

While some eateries are turning into cloud kitchens - no seating, only delivery - not all can afford to do that.Restaurants need footfalls. Only then will the industry and ecosystem survive the pandemic.

In a strange sense, the tone and treatment of the video reminds us of Samsonite's 2018 'Kerala is Open' film that tried to revive the state's tourism market after floods devastated the region.