Ad Campaigns
Mountain Dew presents the exhilarating journey of Gerrari Offroaders
MUMBAI: Mountain Dew has always saluted the spirit of risk taking, of pushing boundaries to achieve extraordinary success. Continuing with the pioneering format of biopic storytelling built on their Risk Takers of India platform, Mountain Dew’s 2019 campaign celebrates an exhilarating journey of real-life heroes, Gerrari Offroaders-Gurmeet Virdi and Kirpal Singh Tung who are synonymous with off-roading in India today.
The celebration of the inspiring journey of Gerrari Offroaders, is consistent with Mountain Dew’s efforts over the last three years, of showcasing real life heroes through its ‘Risk Utha Naam Bana’ campaign. ‘Risk Utha, Naam Bana’ is based on the powerful insight that greater success needs greater risks and one should always strive to break out of the ordinary.
PepsiCo India director, Mountain Dew and Energy Naseeb Puri says, “Mountain Dew has always celebrated the spirit of those who push themselves to achieve extraordinary results, making a name for themselves in the process. Gurmeet & Kirpal are an embodiment of the Dew philosophy of Risk Utha, Naam Bana and it is our privilege to be able to share their inspiring story with millions of Indians across the country.”
Taking inspiration from the adventures of Gurmeet, Kirpal, Kabir and the Gerrari Offroaders, the Mountain Dew film is an ode to those who take risk head on and come out victorious. In the words of the Gerrari Offroaders themselves, when they’re seen as the underdogs, what they may lack in resources, they make up for in jigar. In the moment of choice, it’s that jigar that makes the difference between Naam and Namumkin.
Wunderman Thompson creative chief Senthil Kumar notes, “Mountain Dew brings authentic and inspiring stories of real heroes using the popular cinematic biopic storytelling format. This time Hrithik Roshan shares the story of India’s first 4×4 world champions. Set amidst rainforest landscape this shoot was an adventure like no other. The journey of these men is one filled with grit and guts. This Mountain Dew film is a salute to the spirit of risk taking and the hunger to make a name inspiring the viewers to do the same.”
Speaking about his experience, Hrithik Roshan, Mountain Dew brand ambassador said, “The story of Gurmeet & Kirpal is truly inspiring. As movie actors, we perform stunts on screen but these guys live a new adventure each day. Their story is one of passion, risk and courage and it’s been my privilege to bring the story of these risktakers to the big screen.”
‘Risk Utha Naam Bana’ has been consistently bringing to life, authentic stories of real-life heroes through its Risk Takers of India platform; the most recent one being the hugely successful 2018 campaign featuring mountaineer Arjun Vajpai.
The 2019 campaign too will bring alive stories of motor sporting risk takers like Aishwarya Pissay and Yuvraj Singh. It will also be supported by a scale surround program across digital, outdoor, on-ground etc. that will go deep into the heartland markets.
NATIONAL: Amazon Ads has laid out a sharply tech-led vision for the advertising industry in 2026, arguing that artificial intelligence, streaming TV and creator partnerships will combine to turn brand building into a more precise, performance-driven business.
At the heart of the shift, the company says, is the fusion of AI with Amazon’s vast trove of shopping, browsing and streaming signals, allowing advertisers to move beyond blunt reach metrics to campaigns designed around real customer behaviour.
“The future of advertising is not about reaching more people, but the right people with messages that resonate,” said Amazon Ads India head and vice president Girish Prabhu. “By combining AI with deep customer insights, we help brands move from broadcasting campaigns to having meaningful conversations wherever audiences spend their time.”
One of the biggest changes, according to Amazon Ads, will be the collapse of the wall between media planning and creative development. Retail media, powered by first-party data, is increasingly shaping everything from brand discovery to final purchase, pushing marketers to design campaigns around audience insight rather than internal instinct.
AI is also moving from a support tool to a creative engine. Agentic AI, which automates and accelerates production, is expected to make high-quality creative accessible even to small businesses, compressing weeks of work into hours and giving challengers the ability to compete with larger brands on speed and scale.
Behind the scenes, AI-driven analytics will take on a bigger role in campaign optimisation, identifying patterns, spotting opportunities and recommending actions that would previously have required teams of analysts.
Streaming TV is another big battleground. With India’s video streaming audience now above 600 million and connected TV users at 129.2 million in 2025, advertisers are set to treat streaming not just as a branding channel but as a performance engine, measured increasingly by sales, sign-ups and bookings rather than just reach.
Finally, Amazon Ads sees creators and contextual advertising reshaping how brands tell stories. Creators will act less like influencers and more like long-term partners, while scene-aware ads on streaming platforms will allow brands to insert hyper-relevant offers into the flow of what viewers are watching.
Taken together, Amazon Ads argues, these shifts mark a move towards advertising that is both more human and more measurable, where AI handles the complexity, and creativity does the persuading.
