Kamal Haasan pulls out all the stops to promote upcoming movie 'Vikram'

Superstar Kamal Haasan and his team are gearing up for the release of his new movie Vikram tomorrow. The movie stars Haasan, Tamil actor Vijay Sethupathi and Malayalam actor Fahadh Faasil.

According to a News18 report, Vikram has already earned a staggering Rs 200 crore, by selling the OTT and satellite rights for its release.

The movie is going to be released in five major languages - Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi. Haasan has been keeping busy promoting the movie, to make sure it has maximum visibility with audiences across all these languages.

One of the efforts includes a tie-up with leading mineral water brand Bisleri to design limited edition packaging to promote the movie.

"Movies are a big part of Indian culture, and Bisleri is keen to collaborate with all avenues that excite our consumers and build brand love. We are thrilled to partner with Vikram, lead by Kamal Haasan, Vijay Sethupathi and Fahadh Faasil, one of the most highly anticipated movies in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, with a limited edition pack," says a Bisleri spokesperson.

He adds that the limited edition labels were designed in-house by the Bisleri creative team, in partnership with 82.5, the brand's advertising and communication agency on board. The limited edition packs will be exclusively available across all key markets in Tamil Nadu and Kerala for about 30 days.

Streaming giant Spotify has also teamed up with the movie to promote it. Rahul Balyan, head of music, Spotify India, mentions that this is not the first partnership of its kind. "Since last year, we have partnered with several Bollywood and Kollywood films, as well as artistes from across languages."

Balyan recounts that one of the biggest campaigns his company executed for Tamil music listeners, was that with Ilaiyaraaja, which led to increased awareness around how localised Spotify is for India. He adds that Tamil is also one of the fastest-growing languages for Spotify in India.

"We are collaborating with Kamal Haasan to promote Vikram through playlists such as Hot Hits Tamil, which features the biggest hits in the language, and through marketing initiatives. The film's music is already in Spotify's top 10 most streamed songs in India, jumping up 400 ranks in a span of one week," adds Balyan.

"Over half the listeners are outside of Tamil Nadu, which shows Spotify's ability to take music, no matter what the languages, to different parts of the country. Fifteen per cent of the streams are currently coming from outside India. The music album is one of the fastest on Spotify in India to cross 10 million streams."

He says that as a part of marketing for this campaign, Spotify will take Vikram across the five southern states on social media channels like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, cinema and OOH in Chennai, and TV across Tamil Nadu.

"On social media, Kamal Haasan will engage with listeners through Jam with Kamal Haasan, where fans will join him to jam along to the hit song, Pathala Pathala. We'll also do something that brings alive his legacy, through the lens of music, with Undercover with Kamal. Outside India, the film will feature on Spotify's Times Square billboard in New York," Balyan concludes.

In addition to these two brands, blockchain startup Fantico has also announced that it will be minting NFTs - similar to tradeable cards - that users can buy to own a piece of the movie and gain access to Vikram's land in the Metaverse.