Riding The Pride Of The Nation

Bajaj Auto’s latest campaign for Bajaj V further reinstates its positioning as India’s bike, after the first campaign showcased the exclusivity of V that comes from legendary INS Vikrant, to attract audience attention towards the bike.

The campaign aims to build on the history associated with Bajaj V that has been forged from the metal of Indian warship INS Vikrant, and connect it to the context of the present day Indian. This second ad film for Bajaj V has been conceptualised by Leo Burnett. The insight for the film is based on how Indians celebrate their pride on multiple occasions and derive it from excellence in sports, cinema, music and business, but more often than not, the manifestation of this pride is limited to a few stray instances and a few important dates on the calendar. With the boundaries between advertising and objective content blurring, Bajaj Auto’s campaigns for V is leveraging storytelling as the medium to engage consumers and leave an impression. Rear Admiral S. K. Gupta, a Mahavir Chakra awardee who served aboard the INS Vikrant in the 1971 Indo-Pak war, features in the film and narrates the story from the point of view of a real life war hero, which is a demarcating feature of this campaign.

“After the launch of the bike, we met customers over the course of time, and realised that the pride of the nation associated with the bike was the differentiator which led to the bike being accepted so readily. The objective of the campaign was simple. We had to reinvigorate Bajaj V’s ‘pride’ association with a unique narrative, and base it on a cultural truth, in addition to building traction for the brand,” says Raj Deepak Das, chief creative officer, Leo Burnett, South Asia.

Sumeet Narang, vice-president, Marketing, Motorcycles, Bajaj Auto, says, “With the V, we are not just selling motorcycles but celebrating the pride of the nation. Consumers are also playing back this feeling of pride. The new campaign takes the proposition forward and talks about how the V helps you experience pride every day, and not just on select occasions of national significance. We wanted to talk about an aspect of pride that people can relate to, which people associate us with.”

The film, which also unveils the new blue Bajaj V, has been directed by Prakash Varma of Nirvana Films. The campaign was first launched on TV, with investments in print and digital planned over the coming months.