Boost’s new ad says talent and stamina decide your game, not gender

Conceptualised by Wunderman Thompson, the ad, featuring MS Dhoni, attempts to break stereotypes around girls and cricket.

Hindustan Unilever's health food drink brand Boost has launched a new campaign aimed to break stereotypes around girls and cricket. It aims to highlight the perceptions that shape girls, while playing sports, cricket in particular, and encourages them to play the sport they love. The TVC features MS Dhoni, alongside a young athlete.

Conceptualised by Wunderman Thompson, the campaign aims to capture the insight that despite showcasing winning performances across sporting events, girls still face prejudice independent of their talent and stamina. Even in cricket, universally loved in India, girls face many social barriers and prejudice that prevent them from playing the sport. With this ad film, Boost hopes to inspire the next generation of athletes.

Dhoni walks in on the protagonist, a young athlete, playing cricket at a tennis court, which surprises him. The boys accompanying Dhoni state that cricket is not a girl’s sport. The film then follows the girl’s response with action, as she picks up the ball to bowl to Dhoni. A fierce battle unfolds on the court, where she clinches her next-level opportunity.

Commenting on the campaign, Krishnan Sundaram, vice president, nutrition category, HUL, said, “... With this campaign, we want to spark the tough conversations to support talent devoid of gender notions. Boost wants to encourage girls to overcome prejudice with their talent and stamina, and play the game they love. This campaign will definitely be the start of journey in supporting girls’ cricket for Boost.”

Joy Chauhan, managing partner and senior VP, Wunderman Thompson, Delhi, added, “When you have the stamina to fight it out, it’s then you see obstacles becoming stepping stones towards the bigger game. This campaign not only inspires the youth, but also has the potential to inspire each one of us to understand that performance has no gender. In this campaign, Boost gives voice to the girl child, who’s a talented sportsperson, with oodles of passion and stamina. Boost is the secret of her energy too.”

The 360-degree campaign that will span television, social and digital media, is headlined by the TVC film.

For years, Boost, in its ad films, has attempted to inspire the youth to sweat it out and perform beyond expectations. Boost’s ads, featuring sports icons like Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, have asked the youth (mostly boys) to stay determined, and encouraged athletes to play the sport they love.

The recent ad, however, takes a different approach as it, instead of featuring a boy as the protagonist with a famous sports celebrity, highlights how girls are making it big in sports. It may also be noted that the ad is very well-timed as lately, we have seen many Indian women athletes bringing laurels to our country, first at Tokyo Olympics and now at Paralympics.

Credits:

Creative agency: Wunderman Thompson, Delhi

Managing partner & senior VP: Joy Chauhan

CCO: Senthil Kumar

Creative team: Hasan Jafri, Sumonto Ghosh

Servicing lead: Bhavana Dogra

Account management: Rahul K Singh, Drishti Ganguly

Planning: Pinaki Bhattacharya, Nikhil Thakkar

Production: Mandeep Singh