COEXIST BY ALIA BHATT: TAKING A STAND WITH #POOCHOVERPATAKA
THE OBJECTIVE
To create awareness about the adverse effects of firecrackers on animals, birds and the environment and introducing the concept of a cracker free Diwali.
THE CONTEXT
In October 2017, the Supreme Court of India, for the first time, banned the use of firecrackers in Delhi to address the city's smog and pollution problem. Although a step in the right direction environmentally, this judgement was met with strong opposition from a cultural standpoint.
THE IDEA
While everyone seemed to only be talking about how this judgement was crushing the spirit of Diwali, we wanted to change this conversation and steer it back to the positive impact this decision could have on millions of animals around the country.
Harnessing the reach of an A-list celebrity like Alia Bhatt, the campaign kicked off with a short video of her introducing the problem - fireworks were extremely harmful to animals and caused them physical and emotional stress - and the movement, #PoochOverPataka.
She encouraged people to celebrate a firework-free Diwali and to mark this change, she called for everyone to share selfies with their pets on social media, using the hashtag. This video was posted on all of Alia's and CoExist's social media channels. To supplement this video, we also told the story of a stray kitten through social media posts, to paint a true-to-life narrative of how animals are affected by the Diwali fireworks.
THE RESULTS
Facebook & Instagram - 614,000+ Views
Facebook, Twitter & Instagram - 64,300,000+ Reach
11 3900+ Public Posts
1900+ Comments
Various influencers, brands, NGOs and individuals across the country joined the #PoochOverPataka movement.
The campaign got extensive press coverage.
And the national conversation was changed to the negative impact of bursting fireworks on Diwali.