MAM
Limca enters sports hydration category with a new variant; unveils #RukMat campaign with Neeraj Chopra
Mumbai: Coca-Cola India has announced it is foraying its homegrown brand Limca into the hydrating sports drinks category with Limca Sportz. The innovation is in line with The Coca-Cola Company’s endeavour to provide a wide spectrum of beverage choices to consumers, with great taste as well as functional benefits.
With this launch, Limca’s entrance into hydration-based sports beverages, the brand aims to bring alive the #RukMat campaign via an advert featuring reigning Olympic javelin champion Neeraj Chopra.
Conceptualised by Ogilvy, the campaign will revolve around a motivational theme, to encourage the audience to push their boundaries and have a “never say die” attitude. The brand has adopted a holistic marketing approach to boost the new campaign, consisting of digital as well as mass-media broadcasting to maximise media reach across channels.
Speaking on the announcement of Limca Sportz, Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia director-marketing, hydration, coffee and tea category Karthik Subramanian said, “Building on Limca’s ability to provide full-body rejuvenation so that consumers can be their most energetic, best selves in every situation, we are thrilled to announce our entrance into the sports hydration category with the launch of Limca Sportz. The beverage has been formulated through in-house innovation and extensive market testing.”
“At Limca, we unanimously agreed that there could be no better champion of Limca Sportz than Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra, who is the pinnacle of athletic excellence and embodies the true spirit of our campaign messaging “#RukMat” (never stop),” he added.
Indian athlete, reigning Olympic champion, and world championship silver medalist in javelin throw Neeraj Chopra said, “As an athlete, I understand the vital significance of optimum intake of carbohydrates and electrolytes. Limca Sportz enables faster rehydration for the drinker and helps balance higher endurance during exercise performance—making it the go-to beverage for people who believe in putting in the hard work to achieve their goals.”
“It is the perfect drink for when the body gives up, but the mind says “go on…” I am exhilarated to be the face of the new Limca Sportz campaign. The film perfectly represents my ideals of never giving up and continuously pushing boundaries to get closer to my goals,” he concluded.
Coca-Cola’s Limca has completed over five decades since its foundation in India and is ranked at #4 within Coca-Cola India’s sparkling portfolio. Limca is widely acclaimed for its unparalleled ability to instil a feeling of freshness in the minds and bodies of its consumers.
Limca Sportz is a glucose + electrolyte-based beverage containing essential minerals for rapid fluid intake. The beverage is a no-fizz, water-based drink that helps with faster rehydration in individuals who are involved in physical activity in the form of sports, exercise, and high-intensity chores. It has refreshing real lemon juice to add to the taste and palatability.
Ogilvy (North) chief creative officer Ritu Sharda said, “The most important thing for a sportsperson’s regimen or anyone who is exercising is to be able to do more and more and more without stopping. A few steps more, one more kilometre, one more throw, one more jump, that’s the relentlessness that helps you achieve your goals. Limca Sportz is all about replenishment and hydration, as well as the philosophy of “#RukMatt,” who encourages you to keep going. And who better to launch this than Neeraj Chopra, who we’ve all seen sweating it out with the toughest regimen possible but never stopping at one awesome throw, one medal, or one record. For all those of you who never stop and for Neeraj, we say “Tu #RukkMatt”!”
The new variant will be available on shelves across Delhi NCR, Bangalore, Chennai, Bengal, Mumbai, Pune, and cities of Andhra Pradesh/Telangana starting the month of September, and will be available in packs of 250 millilitre and 500 millilitre.
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
