Drop perfection & step into real life, says Idea 4G to selfie-obsessed Gen

Addressing the growing phenomenon of the need for validation on social media, Brand Idea has launched a campaign, titled #MeriRealLife, encouraging people to drop the pressure of chasing and sharing perfection on social media, and instead, share real, unfiltered stories using Idea 4G. 

Conceptualised by BBDO India, the campaign has gone live with the first two TVCs breaking during the live matches of the ongoing Asia Cup Cricket Tournament. 

There are over 400 million internet users in India and over 50 per cent are active social media users. Rapid proliferation of 4G has enabled better internet speeds, resulting into Indians now spending almost 28 hours a week on mobile phones. This mammoth increase in consumption of 4G data has been fuelled largely by people sharing and consuming videos and photos on social media. 

On an average, people spend anywhere between two and four hours per day on social media platforms. With such high engagement, social media is bound to have a huge impact on the lives of people. The new Brand Idea campaign is designed to propagate ‘Responsible Use of Social Media’ with the tagline – ‘Perfect ka pressure hatao, Idea 4G ke saath apni real life dikhao’. 

Elaborating on the campaign thought, Sashi Shankar, Chief Marketing Officer, Vodafone Idea Limited, said, “People are constantly looking for validation on social media for their behaviour – be it what they are eating or wearing or places they are visiting. The growing phenomenon of ‘living to share on social media’, and not the other way around, is driving people towards a dual life –a ‘social life’ and their ‘real life’.” 

“Through #MeriRealLife, Idea wants to power an alternate wave of thinking that encourages people to share real, unfiltered stories and drop the pressure of chasing and sharing perfection on social media. ‘MeriRealLife’ is more than just a campaign; it is an idea, a contrarian way of thinking that India needs for positive social transformation,” Shankar added. 

Elaborating on the campaign, Josy Paul, Chief Creative Officer & Chairman, BBDO India, said, “The Idea brand is about transformation – ‘An Idea can change your life’. In today’s world, content is nothing without context. Our idea is founded on a new-world conflict that needed urgent attention. It’s the pressure that social media and the constant need for external validation is putting on people. It’s the elephant in the room, the hidden truth. All we did was create a platform to counter this growing pressure. To create a world that’s more real. #MeriRealLife. It’s simple, empowering and transformative. It’s something that is aligned to Brand Idea’s way of looking at the world.” 

#MeriRealLife campaign is developed basis research inputs from mental health professionals from MPOWER, an organisation that aims to end stigma and encourage dialogue around mental health. Insights from research by MPOWER suggest that the constant need for validation leads to a loss of self-worth, a feeling of being ‘not good enough’ resulting in anxiety and related issues, especially amongst the youth actively engaged on social media. 

Staying with Brand Idea’s belief in purpose led advertising, this campaign elevates the role of Idea 4G beyond the category conversation to something that reflects its transformative role in people’s lives and society. 

The high decibel campaign will lead with a series of three TVCs of 40 and 35 second duration, capturing the concept through the lens of three people from different walks of life, sharing how their social media lives are different from their real lives. The Idea ads show people talking about a fancy new car, the perfect look and relationship goals on their social media, while in their real lives they are questioning their own shallow behaviour. The videos end with the characters having their moment of reckoning, where they encourage the world to share their real photos and videos with #MeriRealLife. 

The TVCs have been directed by Shimit Amin, the director of critically acclaimed blockbusters such as ‘Chak De’, ‘Rocket Singh – Salesman of the year’, ‘Ab Tak Chappan’. The new Idea campaign has been developed by BBDO India. 

The campaign will be promoted on TV, Radio and Digital through high decibel visibility across 100+ TV channels and strategic integrations in shows/ programmes such as ‘Film Companion’ by Anupama Chopra on Digital, and popular radio shows like ‘Heart to Heart with Meera’ and ‘Calling Karan’ on Ishq/Love 104.8, etc. 

Campaign credits:

Client: Vodafone Idea Limited
Brand: Idea
Creative agency: BBDO India
Creative Head: Josy Paul, Hemant Shringy
Production House: Red Ice Productions
Director of the film: Shimit Amin

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