MAM
Star Sports IPL promo tugs on fans’ emotional heartstrings
Mumbai: The excitement has been building up amongst sports fans with the clock counting down to 19 September when the first ball of the Dream11 IPL 2020 will be bowled at the Dubai International Sports Stadium in the UAE. On the field will be fierce rivals – the men in blue (Rohit Sharma’s Mumbai Indians) and the men in yellow (Mahendra Singh ‘Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings). Millions will be watching it on the big screen on the Disney Star India channels in seven languages or on Hotstar on their handsets.
To further whip up the emotional frenzy and inform fans that the IPL is back in its full glory to entertain them, Star Sports has launched a promo – ‘Ek Saath Waali Baat. The promo encapsulates the mood of the nation, which continues to be puzzled and troubled by the ravages the Covid2019 pandemic is leaving in its wake, but it spotlight on the stories of hope and instances of people helping each other, neighbors sharing prospective job opportunities with those who have been laid off and a community welcoming a doctor with flowers as he returns from work. Additionally, it features a chef Youtube influencer who cooks and feeds those who are less privileged.
“The new campaign captures this feeling of togetherness while driving the message of hope and support, which has been critical in these trying times,” explained the Star Sports releae.
“As a country, we have always come together during testing times and we have seen the same over the last few months. There has been a greater sense of community and empathy that has demonstrated the resilience of the human spirit. The Ek Saath Waali Baa’ campaign has been created with this same ethos. Dream11 IPL is the most-watched sporting event in the country and this year, it is even more special. The campaign builds on the sense of community and signals towards the much-needed emotion of hope,” added Star Sports CEO Gautam Thakar in the release.
Keeping in mind the nationwide fandom for the tournament, the TVC will be released in multiple languages including Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Bengali, Marathi. Dream11 IPL has always evoked intense emotions amongst its vociferous fans and this time too, Star Sports promises to bring back the same thrill.
The TVC also highlights the fact that the second matche of each day is being played half an hour earlier at 7:30 pm, unlike last year when they began at 8 pm, which means audiences will stay glued to each clash till it ends.
Every year the sports broadcaster launches a high-decibel campaign to promote the tournament.
In 2019, Star Sports and BCCI launched an interesting campaign GameBanayegaName. The film was conceptualized by Taproot Dentsu. It opened with a split-screen battle between young players in a maidan on one side and established VIVO IPL stars on the other, vying to grab screen space.
In the same year, team India captain Virat Kohli took it upon himself to bring happiness to the children of the nation. In collaboration with Star Sports, he launched the ‘Let Kids Play’ campaign which urged parents to allow kids to go out and play. The campaign focused on how outdoor activities build character, personality and leadership qualities in kids.
The 2018 TVC for the IPL asked “Kaun Jitega?” or “Who Will Win?” It was released in six languages, depicting the IPL as a Battle of Tigers – Sher vs Sher. The campaign portrayed a young child posing the question to all around him – as to who would win when two tigers take on each other? As his question goes unanswered by everyone, his father takes him to watch an IPL match, concluding that, when one the feline animal takes on another, the tiger is always the winner. The multi-lingual campaign actually helped promote the Star Sports efforts to invite viewers to watch the game in their native language and not just in Hindi or English.
It was conceived and conceptualized by the Star Sports creative team and directed by Shlok Sharma in Bundelkhand and Prakash Varma of Nirvana Films in Hindi, along with Vijay Prabakaran in Tamil.
Digital
India leads global adoption of ChatGPT Images 2.0 in first week
From anime avatars to fantasy covers, users turn AI visuals into culture
NEW DELHI: India has emerged as the largest user base for ChatGPT Images 2.0, just a week after its launch by OpenAI, underlining the country’s growing influence on global internet trends.
While the tool was introduced as an advanced image-generation upgrade within ChatGPT, Indian users are quickly reshaping its purpose. Instead of sticking to productivity-led use cases, many are embracing it as a creative playground for self-expression, storytelling and online identity.
From anime-style portraits and cinematic headshots to tarot-inspired visuals and fictional newspaper front pages, the model is being used to create highly stylised, shareable content. Features such as accurate text rendering, multilingual prompts and the ability to generate detailed visuals with minimal input have helped drive rapid adoption.
What sets the latest model apart is its ability to “think” through prompts, generating multiple outputs and adapting to context, including real-time web inputs. But the bigger story lies in how users are engaging with it.
In India, trends are already taking shape. Popular formats include dramatic studio-style lighting edits, LinkedIn-ready headshots, manga-inspired avatars, soft pastel “spring” aesthetics, AI-led fashion moodboards, paparazzi-style visuals and fantasy newspaper covers. Users are also restoring old photographs, creating tarot-style imagery and experimenting with futuristic design concepts.
Local flavour is adding another layer. Prompts such as cinematic portrait collages and Y2K-inspired romantic edits are gaining traction, blending global aesthetics with distinctly Indian internet culture.
The surge reflects a broader shift in how AI tools are being used in the country, moving beyond utility to creativity. As younger users, creators and social media enthusiasts experiment with new visual formats, AI-generated imagery is increasingly becoming part of everyday digital expression.
If early trends hold, ChatGPT Images 2.0 may not just be a tech upgrade but a cultural moment, giving millions a new visual language to play with online.
