Cemora to Racemo: What A Ride!

It seems like yesterday when we went to TATA Motors for the very first briefing. Strangely enough, we were all very confused and clueless after the briefing. You ask why? ‘Coz, we didn’t get any details whatsoever about this beauty! We just knew it was going to be a stunning car, unlike the ones in the usual Tata Motors’ fleet. The brief literally was to build so much hype around this beast that at the launch the world would go ‘Oh my f*****g god!’ That’s all.

Then began the sleepless nights with the late night binging, courtesy Ganga Vihar. The enthusiasm that each one of us in the team carried during the course of this project was infectious! We were all doing this for the first time, working on a pitch without any clue about the product we were pitching for. But it was an incredible learning for each one. We all had to up the ante and just go for it and believe that we could execute a campaign to be executed on a global level.

On pitch day, we went in fully aware of the magnitude of this campaign. The client was stunned with the sheer number of people from our team that showed up. After our presentation he acknowledged the passion showed by each one of us and admitted that our idea was fantastic – a pure Digital one and that is exactly how we won it.

The last two months have been rather blurry! There was just too much happening and when I look back I don’t even know how I did it. But it’s been really fantastic in terms of learning. As a team we all grew closer and worked together to make this campaign a huge success. if I may add, we were a lucky bunch of people who got to work with possibly, the nicest clients in the history of automotive clients . There were tonnes of encouragement and appreciation from them throughout this journey and that just made us want to work harder.

For me personally, the icing on the cake was the trip to Geneva! I feel truly humbled that I was chosen to represent Jack in the Box Worldwide at an international event – The Geneva Motor Show 2017. After working at Cannes Lions back in 2010, this was the next big event that I got to be a part of.

To be honest, I was a bit nervous in the beginning because I was asked to film and interview the biggies of Tata Motors. But I did a couple of dry runs by myself and managed to gather confidence and got on that Etihad flight. To my surprise, everyone I had to interact with in Geneva turned out to be really warm and approachable. I realized that some of them were camera shy and nervous so I gave them many test takes before actually shooting the final piece. They made me feel like I was one of them and I was having a blast walking around the Tamo stand.

When the countdown began the excitement multiplied. Everyone’s Snapchat and Facebook was on standby to go live and reveal who Cemora actually was. The world was stunned when that satin cloth was pulled off! Tata Motors launched the most gorgeous sports car which became the next big sensation in the automotive world and the most talked about car in India!

I got to see the car firsthand, and it was most definitely a jaw dropping moment for me! The energy there was contagious and I had to have my ‘A’ game on. I wish my team could’ve been there with me, but even though they couldn’t be there physically they were there in spirit and in technology.

Countless hot chocolates and dark Lindors later, I arrived in Mumbai going from 5 degrees to 35 degrees. A truly fantastic journey, a once in a lifetime kind of opportunity! Thank you JITB, Kaizad and Tata Motors for all the love and support!

What kept me going through this roller-coaster ride was my running and my chanting. Taking out an hour to hit the gym wasn’t the easiest thing to do especially when you’re barely getting a few hours of sleep, but that feeling you get after a run pushed me to, every morning. The chanting (Nam Myoho Renge Kyo) started eight years ago in London when I was studying for my master’s degree. And ever since then, it’s helped me stay sane and grounded day after day, month after month, year after year.

Cemora campaign link (for those who’d like to read):

http://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/digital/tata-motors-partners-with-jack-in-the-box-to-create-a-unique-digital-campaign-for-racemo/57630135

Vasavi Todi – Group Business Manager, Jack in the Box Worldwide.