Rajasthan is Aryasthan now

Ads are perspectives of ad makers; different ad gurus, different agencies have varied perspectives and hence film the ads in distinct ways. But to be unique is something an agency as quirky as Ogilvy and an ad guru as creative as Piyush Pandey managed to achieve

It is quite evident in the past couple of years that the Tourism Ministry of India is taking efforts to attract more and more people to the country and increase foreign financial and cultural exchange. Among other ads of different states being broadcast widely, Rajasthan was missing out, despite having an incredible tourist potential.

However, the Rajasthan government rose to senses after many years and decided to market the State, exploit its tourist potential and that’s where Ogilvy and Piyush Pandey come into the frame. The multi-layer and multi-narrative worldwide campaign titled ‘Jaane Kya Dikh Jaye’ (you never know what you might discover) is an independent series of six adverts that narrate and explore the beauty of Rajasthan.

Of the six adverts, five are titled after the protagonists who feature as tourists in the commercials, while the sixth advert is a beautiful stop-motion animated illustration on sand, revealing Rajasthan Tourism’s new logo.

Just like every small advert has a goal, the aim of this Rajasthan Tourism campaign was to change the way people perceived the State and do all it takes to attract the youth to Rajasthan, which is but a place for sheer fun, exploration and adventure.

The first advert dubbed ‘Janesthan’ shows how Jane finds her Rajasthan in the breathtaking view of Garadia Mahadev in Kota. Titled ‘Aryasthan’, another advert in the series depicts how Arya finds his Rajasthan in middle of the desert.

The ads capture the untouched parts of Rajasthan (hence the title ‘Jane Kya Dikh Jaye!’), which are one-of-its-kind. Beautiful landscape views, the historic figures, the camels, the sand dunes, Rajasthani folk music in the background, added a lot the look and feel of the ads.

So, is it worth spending a whopping Rs 100 crore on the campaign for the next few years? Totally! The very fact that people are already talking about ‘Jane Kya Dikh Jaye’ and that it has overshadowed ‘Padharo Mahare Desh’ is a vivid explanation in itself on how effective the campaign has been and is going to be.

The majestic Rajasthan, its rich cultural heritage and those breathtaking landscapes is always a mesmerising experience. Well, great job Ogilvy and Piyush Pandey. We just hope that the campaign retains its tempo and motivates the tourism departments of other States to add some majestic in their ads too.