Maza Ka Chaunsa: are we allowed to say Konsa?

The other day I was scrolling down my Google Alert on marketing and came across an Aurora article on the Maza Ka Chaunsa campaign. After reading the piece I decided to ‘hide behind the keyboard’ and say a few words. Not that I disagreed with the author regarding the campaign, but the way he started the article got me thinking about the so-called ‘keyboard critics’. By the way, the author is a Creative Lead at a Private Limited.

Criticism on everyone becoming a critic is unfathomable. We cannot object to anyone’s freedom to express his/her thoughts and views regarding anything under the sun. Apart from objective truths and scientific realities, there can be no such thing as a final verdict on any matter. There are only opinions, points of view, and subjective truths.

Maza Ka Chaunsa campaign, no matter how good and creatively conceived, and executed, could face criticism from a certain point of view. To dismiss an opinion or criticism outrightly is not the right approach to go about it. In the case of Maza Ka Chaunsa for example, every criticism will be evaluated from a pure marketing and advertising perspective. But there are other perspectives too.

Marketing communications are not made in isolation. They have to take socio-economic and religio-cultural dynamics into account. A campaign can be a perfect one as far as marketing message is concerned but on cultural grounds, that very campaign may not be compatible with the local norms and traditions. So, in short, there are always numerous angles to a campaign inviting as many opinions leading to varied criticisms.  

I respectfully disagree with the author’s criticism of ‘keyboard critics’. Criticism, Keyboard or otherwise is the pulse of development and modern-day human societies. The more we allow people to express their views and criticize, the more that society benefits mutually. The opposite of that is repression, tyranny, and autocracy.

As a creative, I was told by my gurus that a new idea is formed by bringing together two or more already existing ideas. Ideas emerge as a result of differing opinions. A creative mind can never think of stifling the voice of the people, their views, criticism, and opinions. Modern-day technology and internet connectivity have enabled us to do wonders. Today we can watch whatever we want with the click of a button or view our favorite ad Maza Ka Chaunsa on YouTube, or simply hide behind a keyboard and shake the world with new ideas.