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Cricket World Cup On TV: Where Advertisers Hit a Six with TV Viewership Soaring High
Mumbai: With a potential reach of 600+ million, the World Cup on television is the place to be for advertisers looking to capture the attention of viewers during the festive season. The interview series “Pitch Perfect” discusses with leading marketers their thoughts about the World Cup and how advertisers can best leverage the mega event on television.
Indiantelevision.com’s Anil NM Wanvari in a fireside chat with Britannia CMO Amit Doshi association with Cricket on Live TV.
Edited excerpts
On live sports role on television as a marketer
If you look at the Indian landscape, there are a few passions that bind us as a country. Cricket is pretty much a religion for most of the country and it provides those really high-octane eyeballs, and media situations for us as marketers. It’s an opportunity for us to reach out to large audiences at scale in a short period of time. It’s getting proven the world over, while there may be those switches in some parts of the media-consuming population to streaming and to look at, mediums which are beyond appointment viewing. But when it comes to live sports, everyone wants a big screen, everyone comes together and there is an ambience of people really tuned in to what’s playing out. That’s a great opportunity for most marketers, and that’s how we view it. Especially time for let’s say a new product launch or a promotion, which is for a specific period and want to build reach very quickly. Live sports on television is certainly a great vehicle. In India when it comes to live sports, obviously, nothing beats cricket.
On your association with the IPL and in terms of brand and business impact for Britannia
There were a bunch of brands that we advertised at that point in time. The good thing about live sports broadcasts at this point in time is the multiple feeds that have been created, which are language feeds, HD feeds, and streaming feeds, and what it allows brands to do today is to be far more intelligent, far more precise about how we’re using media. That has been a big change, I would say, compared to the previous, we did use that feed quite intelligently. So, for example, the Tamil feed, a brand like Milk Bikis has been advertised through it. If there’s a mass brand like Good Day, we had the opportunity to use national feeds going into the Hindi-speaking, and English-speaking markets. So, there were a bunch of brands that we married, the media team did a really smart job of marrying them intelligently with the different feeds. We’ve always seen good results. With live sports on television, it obviously manages to build a quick reach in a short span of time and is able to add so much more fuel and muscle to the media plan. I think it has to be an absolute meeting of two things and I believe it has to be a meeting of the business or marketing objectives with the property.
On large-scale collective viewing during live sports especially Cricket World Cups helping advertising brands drive impact
It obviously makes for a great opportunity to increase consumption. I don’t think advertising exactly at that point in time translates into a long-term effect of advertising. So if one has done consistent advertising over the last few quarters, hopefully when the Cricket World Cup kicks off, that brand gets preferred over others. We’re quite confident that with the rate the portfolio of choices, or the new products that we have, not just biscuits, we have croissants, crackers, snacks, and beverages now, which are premium products, which you can munch around this time. So, we’ve got a bunch of different products, not just biscuits, which present the consumer with many options depending on who they are and what the size of the party is at home.
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
