Reliance Fresh calls for a 'Dildaar Diwali' for animals

With this campaign, the brand draws attention to the problems faced by animals due to loud crackers.

Festivals ignite hope for a better tomorrow in India and across the world, and are symbolic of all that is good and wonderful. While people enjoy the spirit of revelry with loved ones on Diwali, it is often the quiet and mute animals (including our pets), who bear the brunt of excessive noise and air pollution. As a result, they withdraw themselves in some faraway corner trying to be a part of our happiness, yet hang around helplessly. To address this oft-ignored issue, supermarket chain Reliance Fresh has come up with a Diwali-specific ad campaign called 'Dildaar Diwali'.

In association with Utopeia Communications, Reliance Fresh has kicked off its festive campaign 'Dildaar Diwali' with an endearing film that pulls at one's heartstrings. The campaign sends out a strong message to all those who let the celebrations blind them and are thus oblivious to the obvious repercussions they cause to innocent animals. The advert draws attention and sends the message across to being a little kind and generous at another level than most of the people would rather care to be when it comes to the problems faced by animals due to loud crackers. The clutter-breaking campaign is unlike most others in the retail category where it has tried to harness its brand power by addressing an issue which most of us are aware of, but still choose to ignore.

The story centres around Tara, a little girl who decides to rectify the situation in her own way without being a mere spectator to her puppy's miseries. Tara reminds us to empathise with these voiceless souls and take small steps which can hugely benefit them. The film focusses on a larger feeling of empathy which one tends to forget when they are up and about and engrossed in the season's festivities.

Speaking about the campaign, Lalatendu Panda, head, marketing, Reliance Retail, says, "During Diwali, people think only about their families, but we should be equally concerned about the environment and be considerate towards the less fortunate. #DildaarDiwali is a step in that direction."

According to Damodar Mall, CEO, Reliance Fresh, Dildaar Diwali happens when brands communicate and connect beyond commerce. "It is heartening to see the connect that the brand has had with people on social media. It has been viewed more than 1.4 million times in the last few days and has already been shared 34,000 times," says Mall.

Speaking about the film, Sean Colaco, managing partner and head of creative, Utopeia Communicationz, notes, "Target audiences are formed by people like us, our friends and family. In order to create something that will be loved by them, one needs to start talking their language and not talk at them like a broadcast medium. A film like this was needed to rock our conscience and motivate us to be more considerate and kind to every soul around us as we continue with our own festivities. We could feel this while we were shooting for the film and the fact that it has been loved by the audiences is very heartening. Wish you all a Dildaar Diwali."