The month of Aadi (July-August) is a bargain hunters paradise, with offline stores inundating consumers with offers everywhere they turn. To promote the launch of one of their biggest sales in Tamil Nadu, Flipkart chose to launch ‘Aadi Thallaadhabadi’, a sale campaign via Talented India that brings you all the discounts but none of the hassles of offline shopping.
‘Thallubadi’ or ‘discounts’ in Tamil is often heard in these jam-packed shopping hotspots, synonymous with Aadi. As is the word ‘thallu’ which translates to ‘push’ or ‘move’. ‘Thallaadhabadi’ is simply clever wordplay to indicate discounts, without the pushing, and mayhem.
The campaign showcases how to leverage offline shopping behaviour to lead to online sales. The regional nuances and representation of this sale period within Tamil Nadu is seen to have resonated with the audience and emerged as a theme of conversation on Indian internet.
Pratik Shetty, Senior Director, Marketing & Media, Flipkart, said: “We wanted to connect to the unique culture of the region of Tamil Nadu. Stemming from a deep understanding of the TN shopping landscape, consumers often choose to brave the crowds to obtain the best Aadi discounts. Thallaadhabadi is our way of showing consumers that they can have it all. This simple, yet strong, insight hit home for both the brand and the business.”
Flipkart has also used a unique touchpoint to make on-ground shoppers aware of the sale – crowd-control barricades that are commonly used during peak sale periods. The barricades read ‘Aadi Verkadhabadi’ (Don’t sweat in the sun this Aadi) or ‘No Thallings, Only Offer Allings’ (No pushing, Only Collecting Offers). These barricades will be placed in shopping hotspots around Chennai over the coming weeks.
Samyu Murali, Creative at Talented, says: “As a 5-foot one individual with an affinity for sales, offline shopping was like prepping for battle. I go in with my elbows high to push my way through the crowd. This campaign was a cheeky way to bring focus to online shopping by using cultural pain points. We shot on a live street and it was absolute pandemonium – chaos but in the best way possible.”
Shruthi Nandagopal, Founder, KCP Productions, added: “To translate the mayhem on screen without being able to actually film on the real streets was a challenge. We managed to find a street that looked just like “T. Nagar lite”, then got in a large group of artists who walked the same roads over a hundred times during every shot and recreated the chaos.”
