Ad Campaigns
Thums Up’s Olympics campaign demonstrates the power of a ‘thumbs up’ gesture
Mumbai: Thums Up, the homegrown billion-dollar beverage brand under The Coca-Cola Company, is thrilled to announce its new campaign, ‘Utha Thums Up, Jagaa Toofan’ for the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The campaign is based on a simple but powerful idea: the motivating effect of a ‘thumbs up’ on athletes which encourages them to give their best performance. Our athletes are dynamic ‘toofans’ themselves, they inspire the nation to trust in their inner strength. But a champion is not made overnight. Every time an athlete deals with a setback or feels a moment of hesitation, a simple thumbs-up from their supporters, coach, friends, and family helps them regain confidence and keep pursuing victory – and this is precisely the essence of the campaign.
As part of The Coca-Cola Company’s enduring partnership with global sports events, Thums Up has been committed as the official global partner for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Thums Up has consistently and continuously cheered for the perseverance, courage, and determination of both able-bodied and para-athletes who showcase India’s talent on the world stage. Featuring Sift Kaur Samra, Lovlina Borgohain, Nikhat Zareen, Rubina Francis, and Sakshi Kasana, the campaign film illustrates a series of compelling narratives and visual storytelling, showcasing real-life moments where athletes relive the power of a thumbs-up.
Commenting on the campaign, Coca-Cola India, and South-West Asia senior category director, sparkling flavours Sumeli Chatterjee said, “We are thrilled to be a part of India’s Olympics and Paralympics dream. The power-packed performances of our athletes in global sports over the past 4 years have filled us with immense pride. Paris 2024 will be a historic occasion, and we are honoured to support our athletes in their journey. We truly believe a simple gesture of a thumbs-up can make any moment a powerful turning point – not only for athletes but for everyone. This gesture, paired with the iconic Thums Up brand, reflects the spirit of tenacity and unwavering determination.”
Commenting on her association with the campaign, Sift Kaur Samra said, “I’m humbled to be a part of this campaign. Knowing that countless people are cheering us with a thumbs-up gives us the courage to perform our best on the world stage. It’s a testament to the support we receive from our nation.”
Commenting on her association with the campaign, Lovlina Borgohain, “It’s a pleasure to be associated with Thums Up. Being a boxer, I’ve experienced the value of encouragement, especially during tough matches. A simple gesture of support can be incredibly motivating, and this campaign truly emphasizes that.”
Commenting on her association with the campaign, Nikhat Zareen, “In the ring, every thumbs Up fuels my determination to jab harder and go the distance. It’s great to have Thums Up as a brand acknowledge the importance of support and belief in athletes like us.”
Commenting on her association with the campaign, Rubina Francis, “Thums Up’s campaign sparks resilience and unity, showing how a simple gesture can inspire us to give our best shot.”
Commenting on her association with the campaign, Sakshi Kasana, “As athletes, the power of supporters is a force which helps us be our strongest self. In moments of uncertainty, fans can unleash the best of ourselves, enabling us to rise against all odds.”
Ogilvy India (North) chief creative officer Ritu Sharda said, “There is great power in one thumbs up. It can awaken a storm inside you, and lift you just when you are about to give up. Now imagine, what a billion thumbs up can do. This Olympics, we are sending our athletes to strike thunder with the power of a billion thumbs up. And that’s the emotion we wanted to capture with this new Thums Up campaign. Utha Thums Up, Jagaa Toofan.”
The campaign will use a 360-degree marketing approach, using different channels to reach and engage consumers, such as television, digital, print and OOH. The brand has created a series of films that capture the story of the athletes and their historic journey to Paris.
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.
