MakeMyTrip enlists Hindi-speaking non-Indian creators to highlight overseas travel perks

MakeMyTrip, an Indian online travel company, has launched a series of ads featuring Hindi-speaking non-Indian content creators Drew Hicks, Yechan C. Lee, and Agu Stanley Chiedozie.

These creators, known for their fluency in Hindi and humorous social media content, are the faces of the campaign, which highlights several benefits of using the platform for international travel.

The advertisements focus on four key benefits: a 100% refund if a visa is rejected for international flights, customer support for trip extensions, a 100% refund on international flight cancellations, and discounts on a wide range of credit cards. These benefits are promoted through individual ads featuring each content creator.

The first ad features Hicks, also known as India Drew, an American content creator based in Mumbai. He has gained popularity for his Hindi and Bhojpuri content and is active primarily on Instagram, where he posts funny videos about his experiences with India and Indian culture. Hicks has over 1,087,000 followers on Instagram. He also recently collaborated with Netflix India and Bollywood actor Varun Sharma.

In the ad, Hicks narrates how his father typically suggests booking tickets through other websites, which Hicks dismisses as ineffective. The ad then introduces MakeMyTrip's offer of discounts on nearly every credit card.

Chiedozie, a Nigerian content creator based in Noida, India, appears in two ads. Known for his fluency in Hindi and humorous content, Chiedozie is primarily active on Instagram, where he has garnered over 4,95,000 followers. His content mainly revolves around funny and feel-good reels about his experiences in India and fitness. Chiedozie recently collaborated with T-Series and veteran Bollywood actor and pop-culture icon Jackie Shroff.

In the first ad, he plays a grumpy employee whose boss cancels his leave due to urgent work, leaving him disheartened. His boss then informs him about MakeMyTrip's 100% refund on cancelled tickets, highlighting the convenience of booking through the platform.

In the second ad, Chiedozie is seen enjoying a holiday and expressing his desire to extend his stay. The ad highlights MakeMyTrip's feature of connecting travellers with a customer care executive within 15 seconds, allowing for easy plan changes during a trip.

The final ad features Yechan C. Lee, a Korean creator also known as Charlie Korean Bihari. He grew up in Patna, Bihar, India, and is particularly active on Instagram, where he has gained popularity for his humorous skits and song covers in Hindi and Bhojpuri. His content often showcases his fluency in these languages, complete with a Bihari accent developed during his 20 years living in Patna. He has over 1,86,000 followers on Instagram.

In the ad, he is depicted at an airport facing a last-minute visa rejection for an international trip. The airport staff comments that if Lee had booked his ticket through MakeMyTrip, he could have avoided this issue, promoting the platform's 100% refund policy on visa rejection.

This campaign marks the second time a brand has collaborated with Hindi-speaking non-Indian content creators. Previously, Hicks and Chiedozie were featured in a WakeFit ad, where their Hindi fluency and humour were similarly leveraged to connect with Indian audiences. Hicks has also promoted other brands, including Chinese Wok and Wow! Momo.

Hindi-speaking foreigners creating content on social media is a growing trend in the Indian social space. Alongside Hicks, Lee, and Chiedozie, other content creators such as Ved Campbell Maddison from the UK, Johan Bartoli and Hampus Bergqvist from Sweden, Amin Ade from Nigeria, Elizabeth Keyton from Georgia, and Jessica Kumar from the US also create content in Hindi and other Indian languages and dialects.

The advertisement has gained a lot of attention on social media, with Hicks, Lee, and Chiedozie sharing it on their Instagram profiles.