Operation Black Dot urges youth to #GetInked

Operation Black Dot has so far successfully brought about a shift in the way the youth look at voting by helping register 40,000 first time voters with the Election Commission in Mumbai.

Mumbai goes to vote on April 24 and initiatives to attract young voters are already on. Enter Operation Black Dot, an initiative by DDB MudraMax and Thincquisitive Foundation to help make voting easy, engaging and fun for the urban youth, with their last leg of campaigning.

A digital campaign titled #GetInked has just gone live with actor Purab Kohli (who has helped this initiative throughout) daring people to ask him to do anything they wish, in order to get them to vote. Operation Black Dot (OBD) has so far successfully brought about a shift in the way the youth look at voting. Team OBD claims that by breaking down politics and making it more engaging and inclusive, it has effectively registered 40,000 first time voters to exercise their fundamental right.

The aim was to present conventional political discourse in a format which interests the below-25 age group as well as explain important political events/facts. At one level the team worked in 60 campuses across the city, helping students get their voter IDs by use of technology to quicken the process and at also conducting such engagements to generate awareness leading up to the 2014 General Elections.

Launched in October 2013, team OBD, as a part of the campaign, visited all six constituencies of Mumbai and appointed a group of 10 campus ambassadors per college. Their task was to get students to apply for their voters' ID card. Two cause ambassadors per constituency supported their outreach campaign. To simplify the process, the OBD team worked in collaboration with the Election Commission.

Besides, OBD has also helped young voters understand current issues and interact with potential candidates in a manner which is relatable and interesting. As a part of this, OBD hosted its very first Hangout with Priya Dutt (MP, Mumbai North Central) and later with Mayak Gandhi, member, Aam Aadmi Party at Bandstand Amphitheatre, Bandra West, wherein students and young professionals from their constituency got a chance to engage with them to question, debate and deliberate on how they can collaboratively find solutions to matters concerning them in an informal setting.

Speaking about the campaign, Samyak Chakrabarty, chief youth marketer, DDB Mudra Group, says, "Operation Black Dot has been able to successfully convey that political discourse does not always have to be conventional and can be disseminated in a format which appeals to the younger generation. From putting MPs on a bean bag at youth hangouts to catchy videos on complex parliamentary affairs, we are making an attempt to bridge the gap between policy makers and young citizens. Going forward, our intent is to continue this movement and find more innovative methods to keep young India engaged with political affairs."

Besides, there will be a Tata Nano Twist Go Vote Drive on April 21-23 across the constituencies of Mumbai. The activity will be followed up by a Voter's Party at Hard Rock Cafe in Andheri, where anyone with the Black Dot can enter HRC for a live performance by Anushka Mandchanda and Purab Kohli, and a few other ambassadors who have helped make this initiative a success. The event will simply thank people who have voted and share a few thoughts about the voting scenario.

Today, the demographics of India show that 50 per cent of the population is under the age of 25 years and more than 65 per cent below 35-years of age. As per Chakrabarty, Operation Black Dot aims to give the opportunity to young India to develop the nation. He informs that the platform will be leveraged to encourage young voters in future elections as well.