• Situation: Taj Mahal tea has been a patron of Indian classical music and wanted to connect with its audience in an engaging way.

• Brief: Create a memorable installation, specifically for the monsoon season that would create positive conversation for the brand

• Objectives: The objective was to increase awareness and brand love.

TEA AND RAIN:

In India, sipping tea while enjoying rain is a national pastime during the monsoon months. Whether in bustling cities or far-off villages, people throughout India gather at tea stalls or cozy up at homes to relish their beloved cup of tea.

RAGA OR INDIAN SYMPHONIES:

Indian classical music is characterized by a diverse range of ragas, or symphonies. One intriguing aspect of ragas is their flexibility, unlike their Western counterparts. Artists have the freedom to improvise and interpret ragas according to their own unique style, whether through vocals or musical instruments. This flexibility stems from the fact that each raga is comprised of a specific set of musical notes, which can be rearranged to create new melodies.

RAAG MEGH MALHAAR:

One such raga is Raag Megh Malhaar, also known as the Symphony of Rains, which is traditionally sung to celebrate the arrival of rainfall. The strings of Megh Santoor were embedded with the notes of Raag Megh Malhaar.

TEA STALLS AT RAILWAY STATION:

Railway stations across India are peppered with tea stalls and tea vendors. These stalls rarely shut and are always brewing fresh tea. No matter what time of the day, one can always see a crowd of tea drinkers sipping on piping hot at these stalls.

The idea was to create a musical instrument that only the rain could play. The result was - Megh Santoor. Derived from two words, Megh and Santoor, where ‘Megh’ means rain-bearing clouds and ‘Santoor’ is an Indian string and mallet instrument. Whenever it would rain, the rain would move the mallets to hit the strings and produce a musical note. This rising and falling of multiple mallets created music as long as it rained.

"Megh Santoor" was specifically designed to increase brand love and bring alive our association with Indian classical music. Taj Mahal Tea, already a dominant force in the market with a strong reputation, aimed to engage not only existing tea consumers but the entire population. Given the central theme of rain, the installation was strategically scheduled for August to October, the peak monsoon months in the region. To ensure maximum visibility, the installation was positioned directly in front of a busy Railway Station, surrounded by numerous tea vendors. This strategic placement meant that anyone passing through the station—whether arriving or departing—would have a firsthand encounter with "Megh Santoor," accompanied by the enticing aroma of freshly brewed tea.

"Megh Santoor" was a grand project displayed on a 75-foot-long billboard, towering 25 feet above the ground and weighing around 320 kg, it was built to endure strong winds and heavy rain.

To build excitement, we launched an outdoor campaign with #NewUstaadofTaj, followed by a local Instagram campaign teasing the arrival of a new musical maestro. Once "Megh Santoor" was revealed, we invited people to witness the rain playing it through another outdoor campaign.

For national exposure, we created a captivating film released on September 19th. "Megh Santoor" was installed on August 3rd, 2023, and stood tall until it was taken down on October 16th, 2023.

The campaign became a sensation on social media, with the video becoming one of the most shared. Within a week, it amassed 41k organic views, skyrocketing to over 300k views a month later. Google labeled it as "Breakout," with relevant search terms seeing a phenomenal 5000% growth. The campaign garnered coverage from at least 10 major national newspapers and numerous local publications. The total media value exceeded $2 million.

Prior to this campaign, Top of Mind Awareness for Taj Mahal Tea in our market was at 74%. Following the campaign, brand awareness surged by an impressive 15% to reach an all-time high of 89%.