Why Asian Paints spends a year renovating celeb homes for free

Mascot Gattu may have been Asian Paints’ first brand ambassador, but since then, the Indian paint giant has acquired many more, not just in the form of celebrities but also celebrity homes. 

Asian Paints launched its celebrity home-tour IP labelled Where The Heart Is in 2017, when the internet was starting to become integral to people’s lives. 

Home tours are abundant on the internet today, but Where The Heart Is is recognised as “arguably India’s first celebrity home-tour series”, according to the brand. The IP has featured over 50 personalities and garnered over 1 billion views since its inception.

Asian Paints outfitted John Abraham's house for the filming of its inaugural episode. The home tour was supposed to serve as a lookbook for those looking to do or redo their homes, much like a talking Pinterest.  

The brand recently launched the ninth season of its popular digital property, which offers viewers an intimate look into the homes of prominent personalities such as Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal (actors), Gautam Gambhir (retired cricketer and head coach of Indian men's cricket team), Keerthy Suresh and Antony Thattil (South Indian actress and her husband), Archana Puran Singh and Parmeet Sethi (actors), and Aman and Priya Gupta (co-founder of boAT and his wife). 

This year’s ensemble reflects a shift towards the diversification of guests. The show has moved beyond traditional film and sports stars to include startup founders and younger celebrities.

“Giving a very diversified opinion is very important, especially when we are seeing micro-segmentation as a very big area. A lot of hyper-personalisation is happening,” says Amit Syngle, MD & CEO of Asian Paints. 

He cites the example of including BOAT co-founder Aman Gupta to appeal to a different demographic. “We have taken celebrities or cricket stars earlier, and that is why we have gone the extra mile to include unicorns who have been successful in their own right.”

Syngle places emphasis on trying to have a healthy balance between aspirational and relatable. He adds that the goal is to “keep on testing genres irrespective of language and age, looking at people who have achievements at hand”.

Celebrities such as Rana Daggubati, Sourav Ganguly, Zoya Akhtar, Rajkummar Rao, Suniel Shetty, Yuvraj Singh, PV Sindhu, Karan Johar and Ananya Panday have given home tours across the many seasons of ‘Where The Heart Is’.

Behind the scenes

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While Asian Paints is a popular paint and home decor brand in India, the celebrity homes don’t just happen to have their walls painted with Asian Paints Coromandel Indigo or Pebble Whites. 

“It’s largely a barter,” confirms Syngle. He explains that the stars don't get paid to open their homes; they do it to make their spaces interesting for viewers.

The show seems effortless on screen; however, Syngle reveals that the renovation and production is a “very, very involved process” that often begins a year in advance. 

He admits that working with known personalities can sometimes be easier, as they are less camera-shy, but the process remains delicate.

“Sometimes a place is done up, and then people back out, so I think it's a very involved process which really tests our patience.”

Democratising Decor

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Is the show only for the affluent? Syngle disagrees, arguing that the “emotion of homemaking is very universal.”

He explains that the show serves as an inspiration board, where the budget can vary but the ideas remain accessible. 

“You might not be able to put up a very evolved texture or a wall covering that is at a certain price, but Asian Paints has budget-friendly close seconds available.”

To bridge the gap between inspiration and execution, the brand leverages its ‘Beautiful Homes’ painting service. Syngle notes that the show works in tandem with their team to offer “expert advice” and “hand-holding” for interested customers.

This year also marks the launch of the Where The Heart Is lookbook, a printed guide that provides more information about the products seen in season nine. 

“People are hungry for suggestions; people are hungry for advice… and this lookbook serves that purpose,” says Syngle. 

Measuring ROI: The 'effort index'

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When asked about the marketing budget allocated to the IP, Syngle steers the conversation toward the human capital instead. “I think the effort index is very high because there are teams which are involved, working on this concept six months or a year in advance.”

He emphasises that while operational spend is a factor, the “effort index” is the primary currency. “It's money well spent, and it is effort well done because the kind of emotions we are able to invoke, making the brand relatable, is more important.”

According to Syngle, success is measured not just by views but by brand correlation. “The important metric is how Asian Paints is basically being equated with homes. We feel that there is no other brand which is appropriating the space of home so emotionally and so effectively as we have.”

Amit Syngle considers Where The Heart is an extension of the Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai campaign, emphasising that “people want every corner of their homes to reflect their personalities”, which is why “heart” emerged as the central theme for the home tour IP. 

Cameras poking around celebrity living rooms may be a common occurrence now, but Where The Heart Is is betting on the screenshots that viewers take from these home tour videos making their way to an Asian Paints outlet.