New campaign featuring Virat Kohli shows Uber as an enabler of movement

Ridesharing app Uber has unveiled its new brand campaign with brand ambassador Virat Kohli. The baseline, ‘Badhte chalein’, is built around the brand’s new positioning that is intended to build Uber as an enabler of movement that is culturally progressive.

Sanjay Gupta, Head of Marketing, Uber India, said, “Uber connects millions of people in India to their destinations each week. That said, each trip represents more than just a physical journey – it’s a step forward in the larger journey of their lives. This is not just a brand idea – it’s happening on the ground, across India, every day. This brand position is as intrinsically human as the millions of people who ride with us each week, and each of their pursuits. The communication has been designed to be progressive in thought, aspirational in spirit, widely-relatable in manner. And with Virat – perhaps India’s most inspiring model of personal progress – Uber has found a partner at the crease who embodies the drive we share with millions across India. The breadth of communication built around this idea across ATL, digital and owned media, will cement our positioning and bring it to life.” 

In this campaign, Kohli plays the role of the brand’s voice to help build Uber’s narrative in India. Set against Kohli’s narrative, the commercial showcases four real-life inspired examples of riders using Uber in different contexts, to pursue what gives them purpose. The ad features a visually-impaired rider, an expectant couple rushing to the hospital, a young female doctor commuting to work and an independent mother taking her daughter to an early morning judo class.

Kohli said, “I am looking forward to be a part of Uber’s campaign, and moreover being a partner to a company, that in all its capacity, is committed to empowering cities and its people. I appreciate the service that Uber provides to its riders to travel comfortably anytime, anywhere. Being part of this campaign also gave me the opportunity to interact with the driver partners at a personal level and understand how the company has helped them to chase their dreams.”

The campaign conceptualised by Ogilvy, aims to reiterate its effort to make Uber an everyday, aspirational brand for millions of riders and drivers in India. It positions Uber as a brand that is beyond transportation from point A to point B, reinforcing Uber’s role as an enabler of opportunities for hundreds of thousands of driver partners and riders in India.

Sonal Dabral

Sonal Dabral, Group Chief Creative Officer and Vice-Chairman, ‎Ogilvy, said, “It is always exciting to create work that rises above just selling a product or a service and puts forth a life philosophy. Bringing to life Uber’s message of moving ahead with purpose in itself became a journey of passion for us. The integrated campaign is led by a set of interconnected films. Virat stars in the manifesto film along with a cross-section of everyday warriors who have their own four different stories told through four individual films. Together they create a rich tapestry of engaging stories. Hope everyone will enjoy this campaign as much as we did creating it. And I certainly hope after this campaign they will see every journey they take, big or small, in a new inspiring light. With one resounding thought in mind: Badhte chalein.”

Uber’s relationship with Madison continues through to 2018, to build and execute the media strategy for this intervention. A six-month multi-platform campaign, will span ATL (TV, radio, OOH, print) as well as digital (Youtube, Facebook, Twitter and content publishers) as well as Uber owned CRM channels and locations. The TVC and radio campaigns will be aired in six languages – Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Telegu, Tamil and Bengali.

The TVC:

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