After getting a thumbs down for its last ad, Tinder seems to have struck the right note with its latest one. We spoke to the lady in-charge of the brand in India about the effort.
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Have you spotted Tinder’s peppy new digital ad? A spunky young girl, dressed in bright orange, goes about air-swiping guys as she looks for the perfect match and dances around town to a Hindi track - ‘Jaan Pehchan Ho,’ originally sung by Mohammad Rafi. The song has been re-created by New Zealand-based music composer Mikey McCleary.
Screen grab from Tinder's new digital ad film
The film, created by BBH India and directed by Bharat Sikka, is being promoted on YouTube and Facebook. People have started discussing the film on social media. The catchphrase is ‘Start Something Epic’. The girl in ad is Kavya Trehan, a musician and actor.
About the objective of the ad, Taru Kapoor, GM, Tinder India, tells afaqs!, “We want to bring the Tinder experience to life - the possibility of meeting someone new and starting something epic, without the fear of rejection. Tinder encourages you to express yourself freely and uniquely, with no judgement, no obligations, on the basis of mutual interest and respect.”
Was showing app usage from the girl's point of view a strategic requirement? Is Tinder trying to get more girls onto the app? Answers Tinder’s Kapoor, “Tinder has opened up a world where the Indian woman now has much greater control over her choices. She can date or approach someone if she wants to rather than wait for the man to do something, she can express desire... and she can say “no” - her opinion and consent matter! She can start conversations and have a say on who she spends her life with - much of which she can't do otherwise in the physical world.”
Kapoor goes on to add, however, “Having said that, this is as much about the people she meets on Tinder - the other men and women, who have an equal right to express themselves and connect with those they want to. Every Tinder match is built on the foundation of mutual interest and equal respect.”
When afaqs! interviewed Kapoor two years back, she said the platform is simply a place to meet people, and not necessarily a place to find love, romance or sex. But this new ad has a clear girl-meets-boy angle; the romance angle is implicit. Besides, the ad was released around Valentine’s Day.
Why the shift? Does this have something to do with the way Indians are using Tinder? “This film follows the fun, confident and spunky Tinder girl as she goes about exploring the world and herself, enjoying the adrenaline rush of bonding with the people she meets along her way,” says Kapoor, adding, “She showcases the possibilities that can arise from being on the app. She could be looking for a great conversation, an amazing first date, discovering a new interest/topic, the beginning of a new friendship or the start of a relationship. It’s all your own. Whatever you want. Whatever you create.”
India, she tells us, is one of Tinder’s “fastest growing markets” and the brand’s “largest market in Asia”. In India, Tinder is used across “big metros as well as smaller cities and towns”.
This ad is a stark change from the previous one, in which a mother helps her daughter dress up for her date. About the shift, Kapoor tells us that the previous ad film was “was social media content and part of the brand’s ongoing effort to create a conversation around dating and relationships in contemporary India,” adding, “Over the last two years, we have grown explosively and also done many more content partnerships and marketing activations.”
About the current film, she goes on, “Our new digital film shows the many possibilities, the little moments and connections one can build on Tinder coupled with the joy and adrenaline rush of bonding over something small that can lead to the beginning of something epic. This film is a power-packed capsule of what the world of Tinder offers and attempts to capture - essence of the journey of possibilities - through the lens of a spirited young girl.”
Recall that Kapoor joined Tinder around January 2016, when the company launched its India ops. The app was available for use in India before that, but her appointment marked the company’s corporate foray into this market. Read our interview with her here.
Vasudha Misra, executive creative director, BBH Delhi, says, in a press note, “Tinder, at its core, connects people to other like-minded people, helps one make new friends, find a date or a life partner. It puts people in control of their social interactions in a way that may not be possible otherwise. And this film is an unabashed, joyous celebration of that feeling. In a world where we are always being told how to behave and what not to do, Tinder stands (and does a little jig) for individual choice, without judgment.”
Shreekant Srinivasan, general manager, BBH Delhi, says, “BBH has been known for partnering with some of the most iconic global brands that challenged and redefined pop culture. Tinder has challenged taboos and become a part of lifestyle and culture both globally and in India. So, the partnership is natural. I’m extremely excited with the work we have created.”
Full list of creative credits:
Agency: BBH India
• Chief Creative Officer & Managing Partner - Russell Barrett
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