Controversy marred Lipstick Under My Burkha's social game on point

Social Samosa takes a look at the bold and content heavy social media strategy of Lipstick Under My Burkha.

After a long and tedious battle with the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) which refused to clear the movie ‘Lipstick Under My Burkha’ on grounds of having ‘abusive words’, ‘contanious sexual scenes’, ‘audio pornography’ and a ‘bit sensitive touch about one particular section of the society’, the movie finally saw theatrical release today.

Directed by Alankrita Shrivastava, the film starring Konkona Sen Sharma, Ratna Shah, Aahana Kumra, and Plabita Borthakur in the lead, explores the life of four Indian women living in small town India and their longing for the taste of the ‘prohibited’. It talks about the mental block and numerous restrictions which are imposed on a woman in a patriarchal society like ours.

Reportedly, the film earned 11 international awards even before its official release. Back home, the controversy ridden Lipstick Under My Burkha was granted ‘A certificate’ after the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) overruled Central Board’s decision to reject it.

Ekta Kapoor coming on board as the presenter and distributor of the film, further ensured that the movie reaches to a larger audience through an extensive digital campaign.

Trailer launch:

Last year October, the first trailer for the movie was released. It created immense buzz and garnered 5.9 million views. The second official trailer came out last month and has already clocked 6.2 million views in such a short time.

The kind of conversations on the trailer too have been quite encouraging.

Promotion & marketing tie-ups on the digital platform

The film created the Twitter handle Lipstick Movie to share information with people on the movie and also constantly reminded them of the date of release.

Terribly Tiny Tales

TTT created a tiny tale, passing on the rebellion to their readers.

According to a report on Live mint, when Ekta Kapoor’s ALT Entertainment joined hands with the Lipstick Under My Burkha team, they strategized and brainstormed on effective ways to reach out to the people. Owing to low budget, they couldn’t advertise on television and therefore decided to make full use of the digital platform.

They have tied up with content platforms like Quint, MissMalini, The TimeLiners, BookMyStyle, Arre and others.

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Check below to look out some of the interesting collaborative activities to push the film on the digital space.

Quint:

Team Lipstick Under My Burkha tied up with Quint to release a hilarious take on the difference between ‘Adarsh Ladki Vs Buri Ladki’

MissMalini:

MissMalini and the cast of the film showed us, how the world would look if men were told the same things as women are.

The TimeLiners:

Aahana Kumra & Plabita Borthakur came on the channel to speak on the film and the controversies around it.

BookMyStyle:

The film tied up with BookMyStyle platform and spoke on ‘When Body Shaming Sucks’

Arre:

‘AintNoStopping’ – The Lipstick Rap was created by Arre and the Lipstick Under My Burkha crew.

BuzzFeed:

BuzzFeed India and Team Lipstick Under My Burkha released a list of 58 out of thousands of sexist comments which women have to deal with every day.

Social media campaigns to show solidarity:

Rebellion in the form of #LipstickRebellion and #MenForLipstick started on social media, where celebrities and public put up pictures online, posing with lipsticks (along with a middle finger). These kinds of activities helped the film to create enough buzz and stay fresh in the minds of the public throughout.

Influencer endorsement:

Influencers like Bollywood celebrities, critics and also brands endorsed the film and urged viewers to watch the movie.

With ALT Entertainment joining hands, the team has been able to milk on the controversy embroiled around the movie from day one.

Pumping huge amount of cash is not always a success mantra for a hit movie, nor is a good story plot alone. Proper marketing and right push on the digital front can change the fate of a film.

Lipstick Under My Burkha is a perfect example of this, from not being given a certificate by censor board to turning the tables around and creating buzz, the film garnered huge support.

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