With '3 Idiots' song, Bajaj new ad campaign tries to re'discover' youth

On the back of a relaunch of the Bajaj Discover brand, a new ad campaign focuses on the thrill of riding to bring out the boy in man

In 2010, when two-wheeler brand Bajaj Discover took on then market leader Hero Honda, it focused on fuel efficiency with its ad campaign titled “Discover India with the Power of One Litre”. Now, after a recent relaunch of the Discover 14 years after the company introduced the brand and carved out the (125cc) executive commuter segment in the bike market, its new ad campaign promises to help men “rediscover” their youth.
 
In the commercial, running for less than a minute, a man is transported to his teenage years when he sees a photo of his younger self biting into a starfruit that he had stolen from the neighbourhood roadside vendor while pedalling away on his bicycle. As he leaves on his Discover bike now, the man is up to the same mischief, stealing a fruit from the old vendor, and riding with abandon. The ad includes lines from the 3 Idiots song Behti Hawa Sa Tha Woh.
 
Sumeet Narang, vice-president, marketing, Bajaj Auto, says, “Discover offers an energetic and spirited riding experience to daily commuters. It differentiates itself from the rest of the 100-125cc commuter brands by offering a more fun bike to our customers who see themselves as hard working family men burdened with responsibilities.”
 

On the new ad campaign, he says that finding relevance for Discover’s promise of performance was critical. “Immersions with family men aged between 30 and 40 years in large and small towns helped us arrive at the brand insight of how the boy in every man is always alive,” he says.
 
Shriram Iyer, president and national creative director, Mullen Lintas—the agency behind the campaign—says the central idea came from how the excitement of riding can put one in a more youthful space that is reminiscent of one’s youth. “We were also talking to an audience that is already about 10 years into work and outside of their teens. What sort of a bike can help them discover the boy that they used to be? So, the simple strategy was, let’s bring back youthfulness to our rider,” says Iyer, adding that the phrase “bano zindadil” became the articulation of that idea.
 
The insights that men tend to miss the boy in them, and biking is intrinsic to seeming younger, were incorporated while addressing the target group. The use of the 3 Idiots song, Iyer adds, was a way of telling the audience to “go look for the missing rider in you”.
 

With the relaunch, Bajaj Auto has unveiled an upgraded Discover 125 and an all-new Discover 110. The new bikes also have LED DRLs (daytime running lamps), digital instrument display panel and new graphics among style and performance upgrades.
 
“The bike, because of its power and new looks, will help the rider enjoy some of the things that regular commuter bikes don’t allow,” Iyer says, adding that with the revamped brand the communication had to move on as well.
 

Unlike earlier campaigns, therefore, where the thrust was on utility of the models, the narrative has shifted to power and looks and higher benefits that the rider is seeking today, says Iyer. In short, the communication has changed from speaking to the economy-minded to those who are seeking the thrill of riding itself.
 
With the new variants of Discover, Bajaj is reportedly targeting at least 15 per cent share in a segment that is led by Hero MotoCorp which includes the Passion, Splendor and Glamour brands. Bajaj sells the Discover 125 and its share is in low single digits. The country’s largest motorcycle exporter, Bajaj Auto is also aiming for a 24 per cent overall market share by March 2018.