Grey to sell reforms

Senior government sources said Grey bagged the creative account last Saturday, pipping Lintas, FCB Ulka and Rediffusion, which made it to the final shortlist. The media plan would, however, be prepared by the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity, an arm under the information and broadcasting ministry, they said.

While the size of the account is not immediately known, the sources said it would be worth several crores of rupees. Last month, a series of print advertisements, designed by Rediffusion, had made it to several newspapers. "It will be a sustained advertising campaign," they said.

Grey's campaign made its debut through full-page print insertions in newspapers today. Associate Vice-President of Grey Prathap Suthan told Business Standard: "After many years, for the first time the country is upbeat. The granaries are full and trade is booming. Everyone carries a cellphone and foreign exchange reserves are piling up. And its not just the urban economy, but the rural economy as well which is booming. We have had a great monsoon."

Suthan said the campaign basically intended to spread the message that the Indian economy had never had such a wonderful time. It will reflect the mood that the country is truly on a growth path. "If an individual wants to do something today, whether buy, invest or spend, there is an opportunity for him now," he said.

India Shining will soon be aired on television news channels. While state-owned Doordarshan was the first to air the 60-second capsule in prime time between 8 pm and 9 pm today, other channels like Zee, Sony and Star, will join the club.

Ashutosh Khanna, senior vice-president, Grey Worldwide, said the campaign was neither portraying that it was just dawning for India nor did it say that India was dazzling. "It is an in-between situation for us. It is a very mature campaign. The numbers on the performance of the economy are already there for everyone to see," he said.