UCB UNHATE CAMPAIGN

[Jamwal]

Italian apparel brand's recently launched 'Unhate' campaign, which finds leaders from opposite sides of the political and religious divide kissing each other,
We cannot ignore this Desi, needs to get views from our viewers on this campaign......,

Campaign has:
German Chancellor Angela Merkel kissing French President Nicolas Sarkozy, President Barack Obama pecking his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao, Pope Benedict XVI smooching Egyptian Imam and a prominent figure in Sunni Islam Ahmed el Tayyeb.


This was Indian creatives had to say cited from http://www.afaqs.com,

Piyush Pandey
Executive chairperson and national creative director, Ogilvy India

I think the entire campaign is sensational and unnecessary. It is certainly edgy, but being edgy does not mean that you cross limits. A lot of people will say that it is a fantastic way of doing things, but I feel there are other fantastic ways of doing things.

K V Sridhar
National creative director, Leo Burnett

The participants of Bigg Boss are supposed to behave in a certain way. Similarly, Benetton as a brand is supposed to behave in a particular way, too. If it does not behave in that manner, then it would be unique.

One other campaign of the brand showed a blood-smeared baby still attached to its umbilical cord. As a brand, it has done several such campaigns in the past. But, this time, I feel that it has done it intelligently. The message that nations/religions should not hate each other has been conveyed effectively through the best form of expression of adore - a kiss. Leaders are representatives of the masses. If they would have shown Barrack Obama hugging Hu Jintao, then it would not have been as interesting. But, this one works and is brilliantly executed.

Ashish Khazanchi
Vice-chairperson and national creative director, Publicis Ambience

In good taste or in bad taste is a matter of perspective and from whose eyes you are viewing it. If it is from the perspective of a 20-year-old, then they will love it. But, something like this cannot be done in India, where our political leaders, freedom fighters, and religious leaders are demi-gods. Provocation in the mildest of forms has the potential to form a big controversy.

But, overall, I like the campaign. How many brand campaigns have this kind of tonality and the kind of media coverage? It has done several such campaigns in the past, some of which include the 'Blood Kid', and 'All the Colors of the World' campaign that spotlights groups of children of different colours and races. I feel, with this campaign, it is getting back to the roots and the controversies that it had created in the 1990s.

I really do not think it wants to promote world peace. All it wishes to promote is a controversy that grabs eyeballs.

Santosh Padhi
Chief creative officer and co-founder, Taproot India

Benetton has always done edgy work. It strongly believes in this. It is a youth brand, and the youth really like all this. If it tries to attempt something like this in India, then it will be a totally different story. Our country is far more sensitive. Hence, its ads here are milder than those abroad. For example, the ad with the blood-smeared baby still attached to its umbilical cord will not be appreciated in India.

But, I feel the recent communication speaks the language of 18-24-year-olds, which is its core target group. It is back with edgy stuff and grabbing headlines.

Arun Iyer
National creative director, Lowe Lintas

It is a controversial ad. But, that is what it is supposed to do -- create controversy. Fifty per cent of the people will feel that it is in bad taste, while the other 50 per cent will find it interesting. However, despite the like or dislike, it will induce talk-ability. I think visually, it is supposed to be debatable, but at a thought level, it is not at all a debate.

The fact that this campaign has been successful in creating a debate is by itself a success of the brand and its objective. However, it is also trying to push too far.


videos doing the round:
[youtube]qImJFg5dgTE[/youtube]

[vasanth]

positive or negative... UCB's plan has already worked...

[amey katkar]

literate youngsters will like it...othas will get confused watching at it and the ad may get ignored...overall its a nice ad but interms of indian context its difficult for the ad to survive..!!!

[Jamwal]

Benetton pulls pope-imam kiss ad after Vatican protest
Thu, Nov 17 2011


ome: Italian clothes company Benetton backed down and pulled a photo montage showing the pope kissing a leading imam from its new global ad campaign on Wednesday after the Vatican issued a stern condemnation.

The company, which is no stranger to controversy over its advertising campaigns, said it was “sorry that the use of the image had so hurt the sensibilities of the faithful”.

The statement came shortly after the Vatican expressed “the firmest protest for this absolutely unacceptable use of the image of the Holy Father”.

Benetton’s poster showed Pope Benedict XVI​ kissing on the lips Egypt’s Ahmed el Tayyeb, imam of the Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo and a leading voice in Sunni Islam.

It launched Wednesday a new global advertising campaign called UNHATE that contained a series of photo montages of political and religious leaders kissing.

The company defended the campaign, saying its purpose “was solely to battle the culture of hate in all its forms”.

There were other shock pictures showing US President Barack Obama kissing Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao​ in one picture and Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez​ in another.

One picture showed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu smooching Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas​. In another, French President Nicolas Sarkozy is depicted kissing German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

A picture of Silvio Berlusconi​ kissing Merkel was pulled at the last minute after the jovial billionaire submitted his resignation last week.


he Vatican strongly criticised the Benedict ad.

“We must express the firmest protest for this absolutely unacceptable use of the image of the Holy Father, manipulated and exploited in a publicity campaign with commercial ends,” Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said in a statement.

“This shows a grave lack of respect for the pope, an offence to the feelings of believers, a clear demonstration of how publicity can violate the basic rules of respect for people by attracting attention with provocation,” he said.

The Vatican was examining what steps to take “to guarantee a fair defence of respect for the image of the Holy Father”, he added.

The posters appeared in Benetton clothing stores across the globe as well as in newspapers, magazines and on Internet websites.

The passionate embrace between the pope and the imam was briefly shown on a banner held up near Rome’s landmark Castel Sant’Angelo castle not far from the Vatican.

Benetton deputy chief Alessandro Benetton​ said earlier in a statement that the ads were “constructive provocation” intended “to give widespread visibility to an ideal notion of tolerance”.

Benetton “chooses social issues and actively promotes humanitarian causes that could not otherwise have been communicated on a global scale”, he said.

But Luca Borgomeo, head of the Association of Italian Catholic Television Viewers, called for the ad to be removed.

“Is it possible Benetton could not come up with anything better?” he said.

The company, which became famous in the 1990s with a series of shocking ads, said it was also setting up a foundation to promote international tolerance.

“The central theme is the kiss, the most universal symbol of love, between world political and religious leaders,” the company said.

One of the iconic Benetton ads — photographed by Oliviero Toscani​ — was of a young nun in white kissing a priest dressed in a black cassock, and others addressed important social issues such as AIDS and homosexuality.

Relations between the pope and the Al-Azhar imam, one of the leading voices in Sunni Islam, have been very tense particularly after Benedict expressed his solidarity with the victims of an attack on a Coptic church in Alexandria.

The statement was interpreted by Tayyeb as interference and he did not send a delegation to an inter-religious meeting hosted by Benedict last month.

[TruthHurts]

I think Benetton is doing good. What some people have to say is because of the 'grapes are sour' syndrome.

The youth are changing the world. look at Arab Spring, Occupy Wallstreet, Anna Hazare India etc. The world is going through quiet revolutions. And take some thoughts and exaggerate it.

Can you catch fish with fevicol? If thats OK, so is UnHate.

[amey katkar]

i read today regarding this campaing and the unhate campaign has succeded in pulling up indian minds too...!!

[vasanth]

Thats a milestone!

[Anjana Kamat]

nice campaign. I love it. We need these in india. will someone have to courage to do it here?

[vasanth]

Its just going make the political party supporters burn down buses.... Burn buses for everything! Big red easy targets....