Priyanka Banerjee
Advertising

Malayala Manorama targets media agencies through Onam

The newspaper will reach nearly all agencies through a special activity across Chennai, Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai

Malayala Manorama will celebrate this Onam -- Kerala's most significant festival -- in a unique way. To reach the big agencies across four cities -- Chennai, Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai -- the newspaper has arranged an interesting activation. The activity will start on July 06 at 11.30 am, and over the next five days or so, will cover all big and small agencies. The highlight of the activity is 'Pulikali' (Tiger Dance), which is performed in Kerala during Onam.

Pulikali is usually performed by a group of dancers, who wear masks and paint their bodies to resemble tigers. The theme of the dance is tiger hunting; and the dancers move like tigers, accompanied by a hunter and a drummer.

Malayala Manorama's activation will begin with a 'Puli' inside a carton landing up at the agency's doorstep in a vehicle. A marketing team will accompany him, along with the support staff.

The Puli will walk into the agency inside the product carton and will reveal himself dramatically. After he has drawn sufficient attention, the marketing team will enter the office.

The Puli will then give a five-minute performance of the Pulikali, accompanied by the 'chenda melam' (a traditional percussion performance) in the background. During this performance, pamphlets describing Onam and its celebration in Kerala will be given to the media planner of the agency. The pamphlets also contain the text, "The best way to reach Malayalees is through Manorama."

Once the dancer finishes the performance, people at the agency would be invited to take photographs with him. The total activity would last around 15-20 minutes.

While talking about the significance of Onam, Varghese Chandy, senior general manager, Malayala

Manorama, Kottayam, Kerala says, "From the consumer durables point of view, this is the best time in the calendar of Kerala for advertisements and sales. So, Onam is a very important time for marketers."

He adds that the tiger-dance is well-known across the world, and has a deep association with Kerala's culture. For the next five days or so, the newspaper will fully celebrate Onam, using the dance to reach the agencies.

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