From chocolates and toothpastes to mobile games and spare parts, Pappu has become a darling salesman for marketers
RAJIV SINGH NEW DELHI
Cadbury made him popular, but it was a Bollywood chartbuster that gave him instant stardom. And to cash in on his celebrated status, the Election Commission roped him in to persuade people to come out and vote in large numbers. That was in 2009. Last year, he was cast along King Khan for a toothpaste commercial. And now, Maruti Suzuki India has borrowed his services to dissuade people from using fake spare parts.
It seems they just can't do without Pappu, saala!
From chocolates and toothpaste to mobile games and spare parts, the affable, if sometimes simpleton, Pappu has become a darling salesman for marketers. The latest to jump on the Pappu bandwagon is Maruti Suzuki, which is trying hard to battle the menace of fake spare parts that make up 35-40% of the . 24,000 crore genuine spare parts market.
India's largest carmaker has come out with a radio advertisement to promote genuine parts, and it's doing it by narrating Pappu Ki Kahani. The funny radio jingle ends by saying that “Maruti Genuine Parts lagaoge to pappu nahi kahelaoge” (If you use Maruti Genuine Parts, then you won't be termed as Pappu).
Why Pappu?
“Pappu is a normal guy, like the one living next door. And the term Pappu is so common in our day-to-day parlance that we often hear people saying uska pappu ban gaya. That's why we used Pappu in our jingle,” says Mayank Pareek, Managing Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales), Maruti Suzuki India. The radio jingle was done by Maruti's in-house creative team.
From a common and endearing first name found abundantly in small towns and villages in North India to somebody who is made fun of and considered an idiot in the cities, Pappu has many facets attached to him and brands are exploiting all those traits to the hilt.
Jagdeep Kapoor, chairman and managing director, Samsika Marketing Consultants, feels Pappu is a simple and memorable hook in branding.
“Our world revolves around Pappus and Appus,” says Kapoor. “Pappu has been picked up from a slice of life, and from the Indian culture. That's why it's so memorable and effective.”
In 2007, Mumbai-based online game maker Games2Win developed Pappu The Pilgrim—an online game that's still popular with gamers.
Alok Kejriwal, the founder and CEO of Games2Win, wanted to highlight the fact that how people have become a Pappu to religion. “Gaming is the new language of the youth and we gamified a slice of life,” says Kejriwal. “Pappu is a comic name, one who doesn't have an opinion.”
PAPPU PAAS HO GAYA It was Abhijit Avasthi of Ogilvy & Mather (O&M) who brought Pappu to the advertisement world, for a Cadbury commercial in 2006. But he never thought that Pappu would become such a massive hit with brands.
“Pappu is an underdog, a lovable character who is not smart enough. In fact, all of us have met some or the other Pappus at some point in our life,” says Avasthi, who is group creative director of advertising agency O&M.
Avasthi is delighted to see the popularity of Pappu, but for a different reason. “If marketers and brands are using Pappu in their ads, it only reminds people of the Cadbury ad. And this, in fact, adds up to the legend of Pappu,” says Avasthi.
Pappu may be a fool to use fake spare parts, but brand experts don't think that Pappu has acquired a negative connotation.
Prasoon Joshi, lyricist and Executive Chairman of McCann Worldgroup, says: “For a mother in a small town, Pappu would still be his loving and affectionate son, and not a loser.” Pappu may be a buffoon and an easy target for potshots, but the name has not acquired a negative connotation, feels Joshi.
Some experts, however, feel it’s time Pappu took a break. Arvind Wable, Executive director and CEO of Draftfcb Ulka, believes using Pappu reflects lazy creative. “Pappu has worked very well for Cadbury and the movie. But it has run out of steam now,” says Wable.
Samsika's Kapoor disagrees. “Pappu is here to stay.”
“He is still young...So, one fine day brand Pappu may be used for propogating family planning or for preaching hygiene,” says Kapoor.
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