Marketing Ganga

Author: Shabbir Chunawalla

  • Public Relations – PR

    PR is defined by the ( British ) Institute of Public Relations ( IPR ) as the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain good and mutual understanding between an organisation and its publics.

    Planned and sustained effort implies that PR is organised as a campaign / programme and is a continuous activity. Its aim is to ensure that organisation is understood by others. Beyond understanding it achieves specific objectives which involve solving communication problems—converting negative attitudes into positive attitudes. It brings about change. Publics are those groups of people with whom an organisation communicates either internally or externally. Such groups could be community, employees—existing and potential, suppliers, investors, distributors, consumers and opinion leaders.

    Propaganda is the means of gaining support for an opinion, creed or belief. It concentrates on matters of heart and mind. These are spiritual, emotional or intellectual topics. Propaganda benefits the propagandist, but not necessarily the recipient. Propaganda may be used for good, bad or indifferent causes.

  • Publicity

    Organisations have to do some public relations, a major portion of which is the media relations. Publicity is the coverage we get for our organisation and product range in the media. Media can cover our products in a favourable manner. This endorsement by third party, say a journalist or feature writer or an editor, carries more weight than direct advertising, which is paid for.

    We can pass on our literature and press releases to the editors and talk show producers. We can also keep in touch with the trade publications. Our write-ups should have a hook  which gives it news-value.

    A company can think of building appropriate values in the product itself to make its publicity credible. Publicity and advertising must support each other.

    A PR professional has to arrange press conferences, video releases and satellite feeds. Media tours of the plant and offices can be arranged. A presentation is the best way to get good coverage. Publicity is on the look out for topical ideas that can be linked with their product.

    Sponsorships and  special  events having high visibility may be chosen by some companies as the central point of promotion to which other elements of promotion are tied up

  • Batman

     

    Batman turned 75 in May, 2014. However, July 23 has been declared the Batman Day . It was created in May 1939 by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. It is the story of the wealthy Bruce Wayne by day who becomes a caped vigilante by night in Gotham City. Seven-decades-plus but Batman still swings in Gotham City. Batman overtook Superman in the 1990s. It got reinvented every 10 years. The Caped Crusader is one of pop culture’s most enduring icons. Batman edges the other super heroes when it comes to popularity. Christian Bale played the Dark knight and hung his boots recently. Ben Afleck has taken over . Blackman and Superman will again explode on the screen in a face-off in Batman V Superman: The Dawn of Justice  in 2016. Zack Synder is the director. Batman is the most successful at the box office in the past 35 years. Some of the biggest Hollywood names have been associated with Batman films — George Clooney, Christian Bale, Michelle Pfeiffer, Uma Thurman, Danny De Vito, Val Kilmer. George Clooney starrer Batman and Robin (1997 ) was panned. It all started as a serial film in the 1940s. It has now become a successful franchise. Kevin Conroy was Batman’s voice for 12 years. Robin is Batman’s side kick.

  • How 3D Works ?

    Human beings view the world stereoscopically. It means that the two eyes see slightly different images since they are separated by about six centimetres ( two and a half inches ). In 2D, there is a single flat image which means the two eyes see the same picture on the screen. In 3D image, one has to present a slightly different image to each eye.

    Glass-based system: It works by having two lenses that each polarise the light in slightly different directions.

    Red-and-Green Lenses:  In glass-based system, the display has two simultaneous images, each with different polarisation. In red-and-green system, the images have red/green outlines.

    Glass-free System: This is the current system. It uses thin lenses called lenticules or parallax barriers that send an image towards each eye.The 3D effect is limited and can be perceived only when the viewer is positioned in the narrow zone, so that the correct eye gets the correct image.

    Princess Lei-style Holography: Here the characters leap out from the screen as Princess Leia did in that scene from Star Wars. This cannot be used for images displayed at a normal video rate, as the demands in pixel density are just too great.

    Defractive Optics

    These images can be watched from multiple angles even if the device such as cell-phones, tablets and watches are tilted. Other 3D technology use horizontal parallax—you see the 3D when you move your head left and right. In the defractive optics, you do full-parallax. The new  ‘auto-stereoscopic multi view’ display uses a back light where the surface has been etched with tiny refractors. Each of these microscopic deflectors sends individual points of light in different directions. These individual pixels, put together, comprise different images sent to each eye ball.

  • Mannequins

    A mannequin is a silent salesperson who neither argues nor throws tantrums. Garments displayed on mannequins sell faster. There are more mannequins in retail today than in the past. There is a 30 per cent growth in demand every year. The Spanish fashion brand Zara’s mannequins were eye – catching and stylish and found its way into India. These are imported in bulk or copied here and are called Zara mannequins. Mannequins were formerly voluptuous, but are now tall and chic. The faces are oval – shaped or sometimes they are headless. They used to come in various sizes, but have now been standardised – 5 feet 10 inch height with 34 – 24 – 36. vital stats for a female dummy and 6 feet with 38 – 32—38 for a male. Indian-made mannequins cost RS. 2500 – RS. 10,000 while imported ones cost anywhere between RS. 8000 – RS. 50,000. A modern full- bordered mannequin weighs around 10 kgs without a stand  and 15 kgs with a stand. Domestic companies sell handmade fibre mannequins. Plastic dummies are imported from China. There are imports from Germany, Japan , Vietnam and France. Shop floor employees nick name the mannequins after their bosses, and ill-treat them to vent out their stress. Visual merchandisers expect the floor staff to respect the dignity of the mannequins while draping them.

  • National Geographic

    National Geographic

    The US–based National Geographic Society completed silver jubilee post a centenary in January, 2013. The magazine published by it has completed silver jubilee post a centenary in October, 2013. It has begun its journey from 1888. It carries articles on geographical regions and the association between man and the environment. The magazine is also available online. The magazine carries advertisements of cameras and watches. ‘The readers write’ column is enjoyable. The excellent photographs are a treat. The magazine too was made available in Japanese in 1995. It started publishing in other languages in 1998 –- French, German and 40 other languages. Its English  edition sells 5 million copies. It brought out a special issue on Mumbai in 1982.

  • Biopics

    Richard Atenborough’s Gandhi had been released 30 years ago ( 2013 )in 1983. Ben Kingsley enacted Gandhi in this movie. A foreign director and half –Indian actor brought one of the most charismatic personalities of the  history to the silver screen. In 2005, Sahara India Motion Pictures released Bose —  the Forgotten Hero. It was premiered at Kolkata on May 6. There was a biopic on Nehru called Jewel of India, but was not up to the mark.The stay of Gandhi at South Africa was captured in The Making  of Mahatma.. Ketan Mehta’s Sardar was good in terms of acting and screenplay but was average in terms of production values. The movie on Savarkar was not so good. After Gandhi, the good biopic of a historical personality that was made was Dr. Ambedkar.

    Farhan Akhtar encted the role of a flying Shikh – Milkha Singh, Priyanka Chopra has enacted the role of the boxer Mary  Kom. A biopic is proposed on the life of Bruce Lee – Birth of a Dragon. Shoojit Sircar and Anurag Basu propose to produce independently a biopic on Kishor Kumar.

  • Prabhat Film Company

    Prabhat Film Company is a renowned film studio that was the creator of brilliant films during the 1930s and 1940s. It was established in Kolhapur as a partnership firm, with five partners from Baburao Painter’s Maharashtra Film Company – V. Shantaram, Vishnupant Damle, S. Fattelal, Keshavrao Dhaiber and Sitarampant Kulkarni. Prabhat moved its studio from Kolhapur to Pune in 1933.

    This new studio had the largest stage floor, one of the finest art departments, well–equipped sound and editing departments and its own laboratory.

    They made memorable films such as Amritmanthan (1934), Sant Tukaram ( 1937 ), Kunku /Duniya Na Mane ( 1937 ), Manoos / Aadmi ( 1939 ), Shejari / Padosi ( 1944 ).

    Prabhat  Film Company was established by Sitaram Kulkarni, K. Dhaiber, S. Fatehlal, Vishnupant Damle and V. Shantaram in Kolhapur on June 1, 1929. It folded up in 1959. It has a rich legacy that survives even today. In 1942, V. Shantaram left Prabhat. In 1945, Vishnupant Damle passed away. In 1957, S. H. Kelkar bought the Company. In 1959, Prabhat was sold by Kelkar to Indian government. In 1961, The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) was set up at the premises of Prabhat in Pune. In 1969, Anant Damle buys the right of all Prabhat Films productions from one Mudaliyar.

    The Damle family starts the project in 1969 to preserve the legacy of Prabhat. They are digitising 18 short films/documentaries that Prabhat produced during 1933 to 1949.

    Prabhat’s film Sant Tukaram was awarded as one of the best films in the world in 1936 at the Venice Film Festival. It created many records. It was the first film to run continuously for 57 weeks. In 1941, Sant Dhyaneshwar was the first film to be screened in the USA.

    It closed down in 1953. But from the premises emerged in its new avtar – the Film Institute of India in 1961. The institute FTII set up a Prabhat Museum on Law College Road, Pune as a tribute to its predecessor – the Prabhat Studio. It displays artefacts, photographs and documents of a bygone and glorious era of film making in Maharashtra and India. It also has a number of props used in those days.

    Prabhat is evergreen at 90(2019).

  • Know Your Customer

     

    Steve Jobs’ approach was to figure out what the customers are going to want before they do. Henry Ford once said if his customers were asked what they did want, they would have opted for a faster horse. You have to show people the new products. Till then they do not know what they want. Steve, therefore, did not rely on market research. As an organisation, we must read things that are not on page. According to him, there should be a deep current of humanity in the innovations. Steve built Apple on the strength of great products, and unlike others did not allow the sales people to dominate the scene.

  • Spot Boys

     

    Those conversant with film making are aware of the term spot boy. The number of persons working as spot boys has increased due to the increased production of films and TV serials. This is the position at the lowest rung in the entertainment industry. It does not have much status. The simplest possible definition of a spot boy is one who executes all and sundry work on the sets. He is the counterpart of a peon in industry and commerce. The spot boys play a great role in outdoor shooting. A spot boy arranges the meals on the set, collects the vessels and plates, distributes tea, manages the guests on the sets, bids good bye to the persons leaving, arranges the chairs for the actors and keep them shifting as required, holds an umbrella on the head of the stars and so on and so forth. A spot boy facilitates the shooting by doing odd jobs. There are two types of spot boys in the entertainment industry. Those employed by the producer and those employed by the stars. A production house generally manages with a team of 5 – 7 spot boys. An ambitious project may need a team of 15 – 17 spot boys. Spot boys are given credit in the titles. The shift is of 8 hours. They are paid RS 450 per shift. If the work is prolonged, they get over time. A star too employs a spot boy along with other supporting staff such as secretary, driver, make-up man and hair – dresser. A spot boy attends to the personal requirements of the star. The tasks are done silently. A spot boy employed by the star gets better remuneration. Some stars make the producer pay for the spot boys. A spot boy must be a member of Federation of Western India Cine Employees which allots an identity card.