MAM
Zee TV unleashes pre-launch campaign for new 9:30 pm soap
MUMBAI: Interactive soap! That is what Zee TV calls its upcoming soap Saath Phere which replaces Kareena Kareena in the Monday to Friday 9:30 pm slot, starting 17 October. Prior to the launch, the channel has now kicked off a teaser campaign focusing on the outdoors.
Without naming the show, the hoardings ask the public to send in their viewpoints on certain issues which touch a woman’s life. The public is asked to send in their inputs through SMS to 7575. Also, the channel will be asking the viewers to send in their ideas about how they would want a certain plot to progress in the soap, at the end of each episode.
“The idea is to build intrigue around the questions. Saat Phere is going to be an interactive soap as it will be incorporating some of the best viewer feedback in its storyline. The soap will progress the way the viewers want,” states Zee TV marketing head Tarun Mehra.
Speaking on the campaign, Mehra adds, “The present campaign is the first stage of a broad marketing activity we are planning for the soap. Since Saat Phere is targeting the mass audience, the stress will be on on-ground activities. We will be tapping occasions like the Durga Pooja festival in Kolkata and the upcoming Delhi Marathon.”
Commenting on the decision to wind up Kareena Kareena, Mehra says, “The show was targeted at a specific audience and it has achieved its goal. The soap has contributed significantly to the channel in terms of sales, perception and image. Now it is time to move on.”
MAM
VML India lands two finalist spots at Cairns Hatchlings 2026
The Mumbai agency is back in Australia with two teams, a UN brief and 24 hours to impress
MUMBAI: VML India is heading to Australia again. The Mumbai-based creative agency has secured two finalist spots at the Cairns Hatchlings 2026 competition, one in the Audio category and one in Design, making it the only Indian agency to have reached the finals in both editions of the contest since its launch in 2025.
Four people will make the trip. Senior copywriter Shilpi Dey and senior art director Raj Thakkar will compete in Audio. Art directors Shabbir and Shruti Negi will go head-to-head with the world’s best in Design. The finals take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 13th May, culminating in an awards ceremony on 15th May.
The work that got them there is worth examining. For the Audio category, Dey and Thakkar tackled a brief for LIVE LIKE MMAD with a campaign called Inner Voice, Interrupted. Using spatial audio techniques, the campaign recreates the overwhelming self-doubt that descends after a long workday, physically panning negative thoughts left and right before cutting the noise entirely to reveal a confident inner voice. Strategically targeted at commuters via Spotify during evening rush hours, the campaign reframes the hours after work as an opportunity for personal growth and charitable action.
For the Design category, Shabbir and Negi worked on a brief for Canteen’s Bandanna Day, a campaign highlighting how cancer pushes teenagers out of their own defining moments. Using a pixelated design language to create stark contrast between a blurred world of isolation and a focused world of connection, the campaign, titled The Flipside of Cancer, shows teenagers fading into the background of birthdays, skateparks and school proms. As a Canteen bandanna appears, the blur flips and the teenager snaps back into sharp focus.
Kalpesh Patankar, group chief creative officer of VML India, made no attempt to disguise his satisfaction. “We are immensely proud to see our teams consistently excel on the Cairns Hatchlings platform since its inception,” he said. “They have masterfully tackled challenging briefs across diverse categories, demonstrating both layered storytelling and a unique creative approach. This exceptional teamwork is truly inspiring.”
Dey and Thakkar, returning to the finals after last year’s run, were candid about the demands of the audio medium. “It’s one of the most demanding mediums, where we only have a few seconds to capture a listener’s world with sound alone, so absolute clarity is essential,” they said. “The true measure of creative work is its ability to create positive change, and our audio submission was made to help those who need it most while encouraging people to silence the inner voices that hold them back.”
Shabbir and Negi, competing in Design for the first time, described the experience as “a completely different beast.” “We see it as an opportunity to showcase our expertise, raise the bar, and challenge ourselves in new ways, while also learning from creative minds from across the globe,” they said.
In Australia, the four finalists will face a live 24-hour brief from the United Nations before presenting in a live pitch session. Twenty-four hours, one brief, one shot. VML India has been here before. It knows exactly what is at stake.
