Brands celebrate different hues of India this Holi

• Despite the Coronavirus fear reigning supreme in a lot of people's minds and the economic slowdown, Indian brands’ excitement for Holi remains unshaken.
• Leaders of different categories like Surf Excel, Facebook, Nykaa, Fanta, and Google to name a few, came forward to celebrate Holi in newer ways this year.

Holi brings with it a yearning for home, for spending time with your loved ones and of course, memories of simpler times when the day would not be complete without gulaal and water balloons. It is not just about the colours, it is also about being with your loved ones, forgetting your differences and celebrating a day of similarities together. As the famous song from Sholay goes ‘All unite on Holi.’ Brands also do not leave any stone unturned to remind their consumers that they are a part of their big family.

Whether it is about celebrating the happiness around our country, washing away old stains of differences, or spreading social awareness, brands have touched different hues of India this time, too. They have put their best foot forward and reminded the country that Holi is a festival of neutrality and positivity, which breaks the cultural differences.

With Coronavirus’ fear mounting in India, not many are in the mood to celebrate. The excitement that this joyous festival brings has diminished. However, many brands have stepped up to remind consumers to be happy, prioritise their safety, celebrate Holi without water or by tapping into live streams.

Here are a few campaigns that stood out:

Surf Excel’s #RangAccheHain

This time, Surf Excel aims to resolve the family clashes and encourages us to see the world through the eyes of little kids. Differences start clouding our vision as we grow older.

This Holi, Surf Excel’s #RangAccheHain celebrates this spirit of togetherness and reminds us how a heart full of goodness and a fist full of colours can bring us closer.


Nykaa’s #ColorMeFree

Nykaa celebrated International Women’s Day and Holi together by encouraging women of all colours to embrace themselves.

"Itni saavli hai - shaadi kaisi hogi?" "She's so pretty, for a dark girl." "Dhoop me mat raho, kaali ho jaaogi." We've all experienced these prejudices in our lives. Alas, more often that not, from our families and friends. While half of our population is darker-skinned than the rest, the unhealthy fair-skin obsession in India is real and damaging.

This is what Nykaa and rapper Dee MC of Gully Boy fame mirror together in a powerful video called 'Rang.'


Google’s Colourful Digital Activity

Google has helped people sitting behind computer screens on Holi to break the monotony and smile together. Google’s latest Easter Egg lets you go wild, colour your screens into different hues and unleash the kid inside you who loved using Paint on your desktops.


Facebook’s More Together

Facebook’s ‘More Together’ showcases how people across the country can do more by coming together, harnessing the power of their connections on the platform. The campaign marks many firsts for the company. India is the first country in the Asia Pacific region where such a campaign is being rolled out. It is also the first time Facebook has rolled out a high decibel campaign of this stature in India. It is themed around Holi and personifies the ‘More Together’ campaign, as it shows young people across geographies sharing the festive spirit, using the power of their connections built on the Facebook app.


Livpure’s #BinaPaaniHoliManani

Playing Holi with water isn't so much fun when it causes so much water waste. Livpure aims to put an end to this wasteful aspect of one of the most loved festivals of India. Their new Holi campaign #BinaPaaniHoliManani seeks to create awareness around the rampant use of water balloons, which contributes greatly to water wastage during Holi. The digital film uses kids, who face the major brunt of this problem, to make a statement against using water balloons.


Fbb’s #BuraNaKhelo

fbb is voicing a strong point of view on the occasion of Holi and Women’s Day to stand-up against the bad-touch many women experience during this festival. Voicing out every women’s opinion, fbb and DDB Mudra Group, have created a film featuring Mithila Palker narrating the inner feelings of all women. The campaign urges men and women to join hands with Mithila and create awareness to ensure that women are respected and made to feel safe in all circumstances. fbb is also giving out stickers at its stores to all its customers to help create more awareness about this initiative.


MP Birla Cement’s #HappyHoli

Based on a poem by noted radio presenter Neelesh Mishra that narrates a spouse’s longing for the presence of their significant other, Birla Cement’s film plays allegorical homage to the love and longing that Krishna bore for Radha. The narrative is at once playful and passionate, describing the many festivities that the celebration of Holi entails interspersed with the yearning of a wife to see her returning husband. Filled with several realistic interactions that are typical to Holi, the underlying message comes through subtly but surely: just as the gulaal colours our clothes and faces, it is those who are dear to us that colour our lives. Every individual in our family and circles adds a different hue to our journeys, some dark and some light, but it is these relationships that build us and make us who we are. They instill in us strength, integrity and stability, which are qualities that MP Birla Cement also aspires to possess.


Fanta’s #NoBahanaHoli

‘Khelo Fanta Wali #NoBahanaHoli” campaign, in a playful manner, reiterates the brand’s core promise of being the best companion for uninhibited playful fun this Holi.

The campaign reinforces how Fanta’s bold orangey taste helps teens to unlock their playful selves, enabling them to shed their inhibitions. Teens today seem to face a lot of peer pressure and as a result go through painstaking effort to protect their curated personas, which can get in the way of maximising their enjoyment during festivals like Holi. Fanta reminds teens that its okay to let fun just be fun and that there's nothing wrong in just enjoying the moment to the fullest. In the two videos, Fanta’s brand ambassador Sara Ali Khan invites teens to shed their excuses and play their #NoBahanaHoli.


Max Fashion’s #MaxWaliApnoHoli

Max Fashion’s campaign spins around how colours of Max bring people together during Holi, irrespective of whether they like playing with colours or not.

Capturing the affectionate moments between siblings, the campaign revolves around a family of five rejoicing in the celebrations of Holi. The film focuses on the youngest member of the family who is running away from his sisters with a fear of getting coloured by them. A colourful twist is further added to their playful bond when the sisters gift their brother trendy outfits instead of soaking him in multi-colours. Through this film, Max celebrates the true spirit of Holi by celebrating togetherness and spreading happiness with their stance – #HoliApnoWali. The film has been conceptualized by Lighstream, the branded content studio owned by Rainshine Entertainment.