GREY group India promotes breaking bread together for Samrat Atta

At one level, atta (flour) is the most basic of our foods, yet at the other, the ritual of breaking bread together is potent with symbolism. This cultural observation has inspired the latest work for Samrat Atta, the biggest brand from Parakh Agro’s stable.

The television commercial amplifies how the ritual of breaking bread together can tide over several differences in our society. Whether it’s the difference between different social classes, between bosses and subordinates or between English medium colleagues and those from Hindi medium.

Elaborating the insight and the strategy, Dheeraj Sinha, Chief Strategy Officer, GREY South & South East Asia said, “Culturally, food is the greatest binder of people. The ritual of breaking bread together is prominent in all faiths. Muslims have the ritual of breaking fast together during Ramadaan. Similarly, in northern India we have the concept of Sanjha Chulha, which means community cooking. These rituals of breaking bread together have been designed to keep communities intact. With growing fractions in our society today, it's only pertinent that we remind ourselves of the importance of communities living together. It just so happens that bread and atta (flour) sits at the heart of this. This is an attempt by the brand to rekindle and celebrate the symbolic act of breaking bread and building connections.”

Suresh Parakh, Managing Director, Parakh Agro, said “Food brings people together not only at home but also at our schools, colleges, workplaces and most public areas one can think of in India. Communicating this broad yet unique thought was a challenge as it had never been done in this category. However, the script presented to us by GREY, instantly helped us gain confidence in this thought. Furthermore the TVC artistically directed by Manoj Tapadia made us believe this campaign will help Samrat touch hearts around the country just as it touched ours. We have increased our distribution network across various states in northern and southern India and this TVC will enable us to effectively reach out to our diversified consumers across the country.”

Talking about the creative, Sandipan Bhattacharya, Chief Creative Officer, GREY group India, said “We did not want the communication to be typical of what the category has been doing for so long. We purposely avoided the “home space” and mother’s feeding their families. The brief allowed us to look at ordinary situations and how through a simple gesture, these self-made walls could come crumbling down”.

“It is great to work on a brand that has the courage to break away from the routine. Our aim was to show that the humble roti binds people together - it is the common thread that links rich and poor, families, communities and strangers alike comes alive through this TVC”, commented Vineet Singh, Vice President - Client Services, GREY group India.

CREDITS:

Client: Parakh Agro Industries

Creative agency: GREY group India, Mumbai

Creative team: Sandipan B, Louella Rebello, Juneston Mathana, Adarsha Deshbhratar

Account management: Vineet Singh, Mudassir Ansari

Planning: Dheeraj Sinha, Sonya Misquitta

Films (GREY Works): Samir Chadha, Jignya Shedge

Production House: Off Road Films

Director: Manoj Tapadia

Executive producer: Khalil Bachooali