Brand integration in movies has become an essential component of a company’s marketing plan. Recently, there have been both subtle and not-so-subtle brand placements in a number of movies.
Darlings, a Netflix original, included a minimum of 15 product placements. Astral Pipes was advertised in the Jayeshbhai Jordaar film, which starred Ranveer Singh. More recently, Laal Singh Chaddha, starring Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan, included the men’s underwear company Rupa and the footwear company Walkaroo.
Rupa’s inclusion in the movie is intriguing because it plays a crucial role in the plot. Khan’s character, Laal Singh Chaddha, launches a men’s underwear company. He chooses the name Bala for his company because this was his friend Balaraju’s (Naga Chaitanya) dream venture. When the company doesn’t succeed, he is urged to give it a female name; he then decides to call it Rupa, after a childhood acquaintance. Kapoor plays Rupa in the movie.
The “chaddi-banyan” business takes up a significant amount of time because it is crucial to the plot. The characters even explicitly state how excellent the product is and emphasise how well it fits and provides comfort.
The movie demonstrates how Chaddha’s home-based firm, which began with three sewing machines, has expanded into a massive enterprise with factories across the nation. Additionally, a cover article in India Today supports the success of the company. The company’s logo can be spotted at times on certain occasions.
The brand is included in the movie without feeling pushed, thanks to a seamless integration. It doesn’t detract from the plot or even draw attention to itself because it is integrated within it. In fact, at one point, it almost gives the impression that this is the true Rupa & Company brand narrative.
But reality is very different from art. In Kolkata in 1968, Prahlad Rai Agarwala, Ghanshyam Prasad Agarwala, and Kunj Bihari Agarwal began the hosiery business.
The movie also includes Walkaroo, which is owned by the VKC Group. Chaddha, a runner, spent more than four years travelling the entire length and breadth of the nation. He had been running the entire time while wearing Walkaroo shoes that Rupa ( Kareena Kapoor Khan) had given him. Could there be a more ideal setting for a shoe company?
There are images that display the footwear’s brand name. In another scenario, he explains why his shoes are dirty by asserting that he has been using them for a while. The quality of the product is determined by these exchanges.
The moments don’t, however, appear to be marketing endorsements, and it’s only after the occurrence that one realises it was a brand placement. Besides, Khan also serves as the brand spokesperson for Walkaroo.
According to brand consultant, Abhimanyu Mishra from Brandfizz, you cannot let the “sell” to dominate everything. The balance you must strike is between keeping it in line with the movie’s flow and making sure it isn’t too much. People don’t watch the movie to see integration; it also needs to be enjoyable.
