If you’ve watched the trailer of Zara Hatke Zara Bachke (ZHZB) and are planning to NOT watch the film – I want to speak to you.
Vicky Kaushal and Sara Ali Khan starrer, ZHZB is releasing soon and you must have seen the two actors making public appearances across India and around the world – at shops, restaurants, religious places, in rickshaws, iifa 2023 and even at the IPL finals in Abu Dhabi.
But has all of that convinced you to buy the ticket for the film?
No? Why?
Because it’s everything we’ve seen and experienced countless times before – how is this marketing strategy different from the rest? It’s not!
So, I thought what could’ve been a better and a more unique marketing and promotional strategy that’s not only relevant to the film’s subject, but also utilises the story and its characters for a more memorable and engaging experience.
Let’s break it down, shall we?
Background:
The film focuses on the lives of a young Indian middle-class couple, Saumya and Kapil who, despite being madly in love with each other, decide to get a divorce. Following the trailer, we see them navigate the process and challenges … and the second trailer basically gives away the whole story but let’s stay on track.
Content Strategy:
One of the critical elements highlighted in the trailer are the families’ involvement and their distress upon hearing about the divorce.
They are obviously a key factor pushing the narrative so why not utilise their characters for promotions.
Idea 1: Family Reaction
Launch a series of short videos of each family member in the film, talking about Saumya & Kapil’s divorce. Each character will offer a different perspective on the couple and perhaps even provide tips on how to manage the situation.
Idea 2: Video Diary
Since the film follows the journey of the couple from being madly in love to heading for a divorce, launch a series of short videos of Sara & Vicky, or Saumya and Kapil separately, talking about their point of views – almost like a video diary leading to the release of the film (or “divorce”).
Going by the trailer, both their characters are quirky with distinct personality traits that could be entertaining.
Idea 3: Couple’s therapy
I thought this could’ve been an obvious one – couples don’t simply head for a divorce, they try to make it work before all else fails.
So, piggybacking on the previous idea, design a video series of couple’s therapy sessions with Samya (Sara Ali Khan) and Kapil (Vicky Kaushal) as a light comedy drama promotional campaign.
And to make it even more interesting, the therapist could be, none other than Mr. Pankaj Tripathi (who’s also narrator in the trailer) – you can go back and check the first trailer.
As a viewer, I would’ve enjoyed any of those strategies a lot more than the run-of-the-mill pre-release tactics.
What do you think?
