Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital gives hope to cancer patients with its 'Ummeed' campaign

For most people, diagnosis of cancer is a life-changing event evoking feelings of shock, fear, anger, sadness, loneliness and anxiety. Cancer remains a taboo subject and people with the disease are often subject to stigma and discrimination, forcing them sometimes to even stop admitting they have that condition.

To create awareness about cancer, Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital has come up with an initiative, Ummeed. The campaign has been conceptualised by Mind Frame India Advertising & Creative Communications (P) Ltd. and produced by its in-house production, Mind Frame Motion Pictures.

Speaking about the idea behind the campaign, Rekha Dubey, CEO, Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital, said, “The main idea was to create awareness in society. One should not have any fear about the disease and we need to come forward as there might be a chance to save our near and dear ones.”

Speaking about the campaign, Shahnawaz Ali, Creative Director, Mind Frame India, added, “As a part of the campaign, we interviewed patients in order to get a gist of their feeling. Being at a very emotional place, it was really tough to do the interviews but we did that exercise to see what they have gone through. We decided to go on a very basic and simple tone and tried to keep it more emotional and realistic.”

“Ummeed Campaign” is a direct result of the visionary the Late Aditya Birla who wanted to spread awareness and education along with providing facilities and patient care to ones who are affected by the disease. Through the campaign, the hospital is taking the awareness drive to a pan-India level to help people from the remotest areas get access to the latest cancer diagnosis and treatment facilities at Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital.

Javed Ali has composed the music for the background score and also lent his voice to the video, ‘Ummeed’. The campaign was launched for the ONCO Day Care unit of the hospital as it promises painless treatment.  It is an emotional song directed by Ali himself. The video shows the journey of a victim from no hope of living to getting detected early and eventually getting cured.

Narrating the story of the campaign, Ali, shared, “We decided to conceptualise the video in terms of a story that starts with a cancer patient and shows how he gets affected and turned to Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital. Eventually he gets motivated and he is turned back with a positive result. Basically the campaign is to educate people living in tier 3 cities and some cities of tier 2 as well. One need to understand that cancer can be treated if detected at an early stage.”

As per research done by the agency, in India, 60% of the people who die of cancer are not because of disease but because of their misconception that they are going to die soon and as a result of which they hibernate and stop sharing their pain with anyone.

Shahnawaz Ali and Rekha Dubey with Smt. Rajshree Birla

Will it be impactful?

The campaign is getting a very positive response online as people are calling it supportive and a good initiative. Also, people want to know about the kind of treatment, the agency shared.

“People have accepted it very well and they have come up for joining the campaign. This campaign will go on and on and we are not going to stop,” added Dubey.

Awareness campaigns are often used to encourage medical screening that allows for early detection of health problems. With increasing number of cancer patients these days, hospitals have come up with their cancer care units.

Speaking about the sudden awareness, Dubey said, “The disease is spreading quickly. Till now, society has not come up in a larger way with this type of disease. It is a dreadful disease not only for the sufferer but for the close ones as well. Cost as well as pain wise, it is very difficult, thus it came to our mind that we should create awareness and motivate people to come forward for preventive check-ups.”

Is it a marketing move?

The healthcare industry may once have been considered a slow adapter to the world of marketing. But, these days, healthcare organisations are coming up with different campaigns. Is ‘Ummeed’ a marketing move?

Speaking about it, Dubey, explained, “If you see the campaign, nothing has been promoted in the video. We are just inviting people to be a part of it.”

“If it was purely a marketing move, then there would not have been a song. This campaign is not for a commercial cause. We want to make this noble cause into a national one. Definitely people want to put a name to faces and places and that is why they have put it across but it is not commercial from any angle,” concluded Ali.

The TVC:

Credits:

Media Agency: Mind Frame India Advertising & Creative Communications ℗Ltd

Client: Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital

Creative Director: Hina Ali

Director: Shahnawaz Ali

Production House: Mind Frame Motions Pictures

Client Service Executive: Baishali Bhattacharjee

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