Indian EdTech company Unacademy continued its cricket-theme marketing strand in January 2022 with a new ‘Don’t Give Up’ brand film fronted by athlete ambassador MS Dhoni which offers life lessons from the former Indian captain.
The latest spot from India’s largest online learning platform, called ‘Life Lessons No7: Don’t Give Up’, is an 85-second film encapsulates MS Dhoni’s offers a metaphorical representation of Dhoni’s life journey and is focused on the message of helping ‘learners’ pursue their dreams with perseverance.
Opening with a dramatic meteor shower heading towards earth and a lone figure (Dhoni) preparing to catch it, the film then cuts to an approaching train that the figure attempts to beat by breaking into a sprint, before with the figure catching the meteor as the approaching train dissipates – signifying victory against the odds.
The spot blends original filming, action footage and CGI to create an allegorical rendition of the barriers Dhoni overcame to become an elite cricketer and remain ‘battle ready’. Its copy and narrative encourage viewers to keep ‘eyes on the target’ and keep the ‘determination to break every barrier’ is what ‘makes a champion’.
The underlying message is that any individual can overcome insecurity through relentless effort and commitment.
Leveraging ‘International Day of Education’ and launched on 25 January, the creative ran across television and on the brand’s own digital and social channels.
Unacademy’s team worked with creative agency Mullenlowe Lintas, production house Hungry Films with Director Vijay Sawant and producer Dharam Valia while the spot was voiced by Viraj Adhav.
The commercial took three months to create and involved a large production team with a crew of more than 200 working on the live action shoot and more than 40 artists, VFX experts and software engineers working on the visual effects and post production (working in Argentina, Portugal and US as well as in India).
“Lesson No 7 is Dhoni’s life mantra of how with a persistent approach, you can be assured of greatness awaiting beyond barriers,” explained Unacademy CMO Karan Shroff. “Our journey with our Learners is not only till they crack an exam but for their entire life, and this is a life lesson which we hope will inspire all of them to continue to fight and chase their dreams. We are extremely proud of this film and thankful to Dhoni, who supported us in delivering our mission and welcome him on board the Unacademy train.”
MS Dhoni added: “Both in life and in cricket, I have always believed in two things, i.e to focus on breaking through the next immediate barrier and continue to learn to be battle ready. The film reflects on how Unacademy looks at Learning as a continuous process and prepares you for your next challenge ahead and I am delighted to be associated with Unacademy. As they say “You never lose, you either win or you learn, so looking forward to the same with this association.”
“The most inspiring people in the world are the ones who are students till their last breath. Hats off Mahi for inspiring the world much beyond cricket! It’s difficult to encapsulate this great athlete’s journey in 85 seconds but we’ve made a very valiant and a passionate attempt,” outlined Mullenlowe Lintas Group Regional Creative Officer Puneet Kapoor. “Kudos to our creative team for the long drawn production, Unacademy marketing team for sticking for this idea through thick and thin and to Hungry films for pulling off this beauty.”
Comment
This marketing burst sees Unacademy continue to use cricket as a core pillar in its marketing mix and follows on from previous IPL sponsorship activation such as October 2021’s ‘Learn From Mistakes’ and March 2021 ‘The Great Lesson’ with athlete ambassador and Indian sporting icon Sachin Tendulkar.
Indeed, Unacademy isn’t the only Indian EdTech brand to marketing around cricket. Rival Great learnings teamed up with then Indian skipper Virat Kohli for a campaign called ‘Great Learning For Great Careers’.
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