CHENNAI: Bharti's Airtel, one of the leading cellular operators
in the country, has roped in the Mozart of Indian music, A R Rahman
as its brand ambassador.
The television commercial featuring him is expected to go on air
shortly. This is the first commercial endorsement that this shy but
highly talented music director, who emerged on the Indian film
scene in the early 90s with Maniratnam�s Roja, has agreed to
do.
Further, this is also the first advertisement jingle that Rahman
has set the music for, after a gap of almost 12 years. Airtel has
reportedly paid Rs 1 crore to Rahman for the commercial.
In fact, as per reports emanating from the UK, Rahman sells more
albums than Madonna and Britney Spears put together. He is said to
have sold 200m albums worldwide, which is 50m more than Madonna
(130m) and Spears (20m) collectively.
According to industry sources, the TV commercial featuring Rahman
was shot by ace cinematographer and ad-film maker Rajiv Menon for
Rediffusion, Delhi. It was shot over three days in London and is
expected to go on air shortly.
While the original plan was to air the new commercial on the
Independence Day, it has now been reportedly postponed to August
30, sources told the Economic Times.
However, Rahman is not the first celebrity that Airtel has signed
to promote its brand, especially its pre-paid card Magic.
It has already roped in Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan (�Magic hai
to, Mumkin hai�
and Kareena
Kapoor for promoting �Magic� across the country and Kollywood
actor, Madhavan for Chennai and Tamil Nadu circles.
With its generic benefits like no rentals, no security deposits, no
bills, instant connectivity, STD and ISD connection, ease of
availability, and low entry costs, Magic is claimed to be the
largest selling pre-paid card in the country.
Launched in October �01, Magic is now said to be available in a few
thousand outlets across the country including 24-hour outlets,
chemist shops, stationery shops and general stores
