MAM
Muskurayega India – an initiative by Jackky Bhagnani’s Jjust Music and Cape of Good Films will now reach millions through the Likee community
Some of the biggest names from the Bollywood fraternity have assembled for a music video that encourages people to be strong to confront coronavirus pandemic. Leading short video platform Likee too has stretched out a helping hand as a promotion partner for the song titled ‘Muskurayega India’, which is produced by Cape of Good Films and Jackky Bhagnani’s Jjust Music. In the song, Bollywood bigwigs reassure people in the wake of the ongoing countrywide lockdown that normal days would get back on track.
As part of the partnership, Likee will urge people to watch the song on YouTube to ensure maximum views. Revenues earned and amount pledged through this initiative will be donated to the PM-CARE Funds and the Maharashtra Chief Minister Relief Fund. Likee has also invited Likers to create videos on the song and post it with #MuskurayegaIndia, which is already trending on the platform.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also took to social media site Twitter to share the music video. Lauding the Bollywood stars, the Prime Minister called it a “good initiative by our film fraternity”.
The stars who have appeared in the video are Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Rajkummar Rao, Kartik Aryan, Ayushmann Khurrana, Vicky Kaushal, Kriti Sanon, Bhumi Pednekar, Siddharth Malhotra, Ananya Panday, Kiara Advani, Rakul Preet Singh, Taapsee Pannu, Team India’s firebrand opener Shikhar Dhawanand Jackky Bhagnani . Practicing social distancing and lockdown norms, the video has been shot at the homes of these B-Town celebrities itself. Other than these celebrities, Mumbai Police personnel have been portrayed in the video as the real heroes in these trying times.
Speaking to Abhishek Dutta, Head of Likee India, in an exclusive live session on Likee, Jjust Music owner Jackky Bhagnani said, “Every performer you see in the video supported the initiative whole heartedly. They all shot their part at their homes and shared, following which the video was created. The idea is to ramp up charitable donation to help those suffering due to coronavirus.” He further urged Likers to ensure that they liked and shared the video so that maximum help could be delivered to the needy.
MAM
ASCI study uncovers how Gen Alpha navigates ads in endless digital feeds
‘What the Sigma?’ ethnographic report maps blurred boundaries between content and commerce for 7–15-year-olds.
MUMBAI: Gen Alpha isn’t scrolling through the internet, they’re living rent-free inside its never-ending dopamine drip, and the ads have already moved in next door. The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) Academy, partnering with Futurebrands Consulting, has published ‘What the Sigma?’, an immersive ethnographic study that maps how Indian children aged 7–15 (Generation Alpha) consume, interpret and live alongside media and commercial messaging in a hyper-digital environment.
The research draws on in-home interviews, sibling and peer conversations, and discussions with parents, teachers, counsellors, psychologists, marketers and kidfluencers across six cities. It examines not only what children watch but how algorithms, content creators, peers and parents shape their relationship with the constant stream of shorts, vlogs, gameplay, memes, sponsored posts and ‘kid-ified’ adult material.
Five core themes emerged:
- Discontinuous Generation, Gen Alpha is not growing up alongside the internet, they are growing up inside it. Cultural references, humour, aesthetics and language sync globally in real time, often leaving adults functionally illiterate in their children’s world. A reference that lands instantly for a 10-year-old in Mumbai or Visakhapatnam feels opaque or disjointed to most parents.
- Authority Vacuum, Parents and teachers frequently lose cultural fluency in digital spaces. The algorithm responsive, inexhaustible and perfectly attuned to preferences becomes the most attentive presence in many children’s daily lives. Rules around screen time feel increasingly difficult to enforce when adults cannot fully see or understand the content landscape.
- Digital as Society, Online and offline no longer exist as separate realms, they form one continuous reality. The phone is not a tool children pick up; it is the primary social environment they inhabit.
- Great Media Mukbang, Content flows as an ambient, boundary-less, multi-sensorial stream. Entertainment, advertising, commerce, gameplay, memes and vlogs merge into one undifferentiated feed. The line between active choice and passive absorption has largely collapsed.
- Blurred Ad Recognition, Children aged 7–12 typically recognise only the most overt advertising formats. Influencer promotions, gaming integrations and vlog sponsorships often register as organic entertainment. Children aged 13–15 show greater ad literacy but remain highly susceptible to narrative-integrated, passion-driven and emotionally resonant brand messaging. Discernment remains low across the board in a non-stop stream.
ASCI CEO and secretary general Manisha Kapoor said, “ASCI Academy’s study is an investigation into the content life of Generation Alpha not to judge them but to understand them. Their cultural reference points seem disjointed from those of earlier generations. Insights on how they perceive advertising is the first step towards building more responsible engagement frameworks, given that they are the youngest media consumers in our country right now.”
Futurebrands Consulting founder and director Santosh Desai added, “While earlier generations have been exposed to digital media, for this generation it is the world they inhabit. This report explores not only what they watch but how they are being shaped by algorithms, content and advertising.”
The study proposes four adaptive, principles-led pathways:
- Universal signposting of commercial intent using design principles that make advertising recognisable even to young audiences.
- Ecosystem-wide responsibility shared among advertisers, platforms, creators, schools and parents.
- Future-ready safeguards built directly into children’s content experiences rather than as optional background settings.
- Formal media and advertising literacy embedded in school curricula to teach age-appropriate understanding of persuasion and commercial intent.
In a feed that never pauses, Gen Alpha isn’t merely watching content, they’re swimming in an ocean where entertainment, commerce and identity swirl together. The real question isn’t whether they can spot an ad; it’s whether the adults building the ocean can agree on where the lifeguards should stand.
