After Da Da Ding, Nike gets Mumbai’s women to make the world listen

It was three years ago in 2016 that Nike had celebrated Indian sportswomen and fitness enthusiasts in its very successful campaign – ‘Da Da Ding’, created in collaboration with Wieden+Kennedy Delhi. In 2019, the celebration of the power of sports in India came full circle with Nike’s Make the World Listen initiative. This event, supported by the presence of some of India’s most celebrated athletes such as Joshna Chinappa and Sunil Chhetri, brought together 2,200 women for a sports festival that culminated into a 3 km run. Incidentally, Joshna Chinappa was part of the Da Da Ding campaign as well. 

The sports festival also saw musical performances by Anushka Manchanda, Siri Narayan, and Sandunes. Football, cricket, an obstacle course and power training were some of the activities that got the women to move and challenge themselves with onsite education and awareness of the sports bra; its crucial role in enabling comfort, support and confidence as a woman does sport. With that, the sheer number of women who donned their sports bra as they took part in the activities and 3KM run formed a sizeable community during the event, acknowledging its significance. 

Nike’s Make the World Listen campaign started taking shape even before its experiential launch in March, when a collective group of bold women ran the Mumbai Marathon with empowerment messages printed on their sports bras as they set out to overcome judgement they faced and make a stand. It not only introduced the thought of empowered choices, but also enabled women to drive change within themselves and amongst their communities through sport. 

The campaign momentum continued for over five weeks in Mumbai with Nike providing women complimentary access to a variety of sports and fitness activities at 13 locations across the city. The women of Mumbai took the opportunity to train with some of Nike’s best trainers, coaches, and athletes at Nike Training Club (NTC) and Nike Run Club (NRC) sessions. They were also given access to different sports and activities like Football, Cricket, Zumba, Kickboxing, Dancing, Running and Yoga, catering to their diverse preferences to get moving. 

Throughout this campaign, Nike has combined innovation and inspiration to fuel this movement of change for women. Additionally, the movement amplified voices, sentiments and participation of bold, active role models who have smashed judgements and made great strides such as Nike athletes Harmanpreet Kaur, MR Poovamma and Deepika Kumari; alongside Tanya Agarwal, Nikita Seth, Mihira Appnender, Shaleena Nathani, Mishti Khatri, Urmi Kothari and Juhi Godambe. 

Keerthana Ramakrishnan, Marketing Head, Nike India, commented, “Through the complimentary sessions we wanted to give women and girls the opportunity to realise their full potential – on the field – and in life and the participation was overwhelming. We are glad to lead this change through sport. We are truly encouraged by the success of this campaign where thousands of women have successfully taken the first step towards sport and have built a powerful community supporting each other to #MakeTheWorldListen.”