Brands
Sunny side up, Bappa! Cooking oil brand pens film for Ganesh Chaturthi
MUMBAI: Modaks, melodies, and memories Ganesh Chaturthi is here, and this year International Sunny Cooking Oil is stirring the pot with emotion. The brand has launched a moving three-minute film titled Letter to Bappa, capturing how India welcomes its beloved deity into homes and hearts. The short film traces the journey of a little girl travelling from city bustle to village calm, soaking in the colours, rhythms, and aromas of the festival. It all culminates in her writing a heartfelt note to ‘Bappa’, a letter that becomes the film’s emotional anchor, symbolising the different ways families express devotion.
Food, naturally, plays centre stage. Tying back to Sunny Oil’s proposition Life Aapki, Recipe Aapki, the narrative shows how celebrations come alive around kitchen tables, where festive feasts and everyday meals alike become moments of bonding.
“Ganesh Chaturthi is a festival that brings families together, and food is at the centre of every celebration. With our film, we wanted to capture that spirit, the laughter, the togetherness, and the joy of sharing a meal,” said Frigorifico Allana Pvt. Ltd. CEO for consumer products Division Milind Pingle makers of Sunny Oil.
For Alphax co-founder Dorothy Rebello the film was also deeply personal: “The way children see Bappa with wonder and unfiltered love became the heart of the story. We wanted it to feel human, relatable, and rooted in everyday celebrations.”
From the nostalgic making of modaks to the aroma of festive spreads, Sunny positions itself not just as a cooking staple but as part of India’s cultural fabric. The film closes on the brand’s enduring promise: that every festival, every recipe, and every shared meal becomes a memory seasoned with love.
Brands
MS Dhoni joins Cars24’s Crashfree India as Goodwill Ambassador
Cricketing legend lends his voice to the fight against road fatalities in India.
MUMBAI: MS Dhoni has traded his cricket whites for a new kind of captaincy, one that aims to save lives on India’s roads. The former India captain has been appointed Goodwill Ambassador for Crashfree India, Cars24’s national road safety initiative. The move brings one of the country’s most trusted and disciplined public figures to a cause that desperately needs both credibility and urgency.
India continues to record the highest number of traffic fatalities globally. In 2024 alone, 1,80,000 people lost their lives on Indian roads, one every three minutes. The country has roughly 1% of the world’s vehicles but accounts for 11 per cent of global road deaths. Shockingly, 66 per cent of those killed were between 18 and 34 years old, the most productive age group, and nearly 10,000 were school students. Seven in ten fatalities were linked to overspeeding.
Dhoni, known for his calm judgment under pressure, did not mince words when speaking about the issue. “A vehicle gives you freedom, but it also gives you responsibility,” he said. “On our roads, too many people still see safety as a rule to follow only when someone is watching. That mindset has cost us far too much.”
He added: “We already know what is going wrong. We know how many lives are being lost. What we need now is not more excuses. We need more responsibility, more discipline, and more respect for life.”
For Cars24, the association goes beyond a celebrity endorsement. Founder and CEO Vikram Chopra described Dhoni’s involvement as a game-changer: “His understanding of Indian roads is grounded in lived experience. He holds us to a higher standard and his involvement challenges us to push this mission further.”
Crashfree India aims to shift the national conversation on road safety from reaction to prevention, from accepting deaths as routine to treating them as the urgent failure they are. With Dhoni on board, the initiative gains a powerful, trusted voice that transcends statistics and connects directly with millions of Indians.
In a country where dangerous driving is too often mistaken for confidence, Dhoni’s message is refreshingly clear: true strength lies in control, discipline, and respect for life. When one of India’s most respected captains decides to lead this fight, the conversation suddenly becomes much harder to ignore.
The roads just got a new captain. And this time, the goal is not to win a trophy but to save lives.
