Paytm has announced that its subsidiary Paytm First Games (PFG) has unveiled its latest marketing campaign with Sachin Tendulkar as a digital financial service platform. The ‘Making the Right Decision’ campaign hopes to inspire millions of fellow citizens to chase their desires based on the cricketer’s path. The initiative further reflects the company’s goal of supporting the nation’s fantasy sports and invites budding players to enjoy PFG’s skills and strategy-based games.
On social media, the new ad for Paytm First games is being heavily criticized. The justification is that the ad depicts a young boy (presumably young Tendulkar) being slapped.
He leaves his school to cheer for his senior cricket match, according to the sequence of events depicted in the advertisement. He is slapped by the coach, questioning him whether he wants to play in life, or if he wants to cheer for someone. The young boy is hurt and frustrated, understandably, but comes back to the same coach, saying that he wants to play in life. The second half of the ad shows the young lad being taught the signature high-elbow straight drive of Tendulkar.
The shot cuts and we see Tendulkar himself in an ODI match with running commentary in the background playing the very same shot. In the historical images, we see Tendulkar’s face emerging and he says, “It’s all about the choices you make”.
At first, the ad was appreciated for depicting the technique of the young boy being taught Tendulkar style. Twitter influencer Apoorv Sood (@trendulkar) tweeted his support for the ad with over 1.2 million followers on the website, calling it ‘nicely done’.
Sudhanshu Gupta, Chief Operating Officer, Paytm First Games, said they were excited to see their whole campaign strike a chord with everyone. The theme also matches well with the fantasy sports game, which allows consumers to have the in-depth game and player know-how and study and make rational decisions when making their team.
Other people, however, took to the forum to express dissatisfaction with the message being conveyed. In the interest of sportsmanship, Bollywood director Kunal Kohli tweeted that the commercial was inappropriate and that there was nothing wrong with cheering for another side.
Netizens said that slapping a boy, regardless of the mistake they made, was downright violent. Another person has said that the ad normalized the slapping behavior, which is viewed by many as inexcusable.
