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When trolls blurred the boundary between fun and bullying, The Great Khali gave it back in a sporty way and bagged more brand endorsements.
Dalip Singh Rana is an actor-wrestler best known by his ring name, The Great Khali, and for his time in WWE. Trolls and admirers left amusing and occasionally insulting remarks on his Instagram. Content producers created memes and imitated Khali on their pages after this trend gained traction. Even though some defended Khali, many verified handles also had a good time at Khali's expense. But the wrestler didn’t seem to care! He often found the humorous comments amusing.
The viral sensation in the ad universe
The mockumentary-style film from Ambuja Cement helped Khali become a viral sensation in the advertising world. Ambuja Cement outperformed their rivals by going above and beyond the first degree of originality while keeping in mind the brand's main concept of strength. Ironically, the movie demonstrates how the man who is supposed to be the most powerful in the nation is weak and helpless when it came to being home cheerfully because of his strength.
Ambuja Cement's campaign seemed to hit all the right notes and performed well in comparison.
Also Read: Licious celebrates meaty indulgences with campaign ft. The Great Khali, Karan Kundra & Danish Sait!
Khali gained instant stardom after demonstrating his strength and resolve on the international wrestling stage. When he made his social media debut with content that was as original and relevant as his straightforward persona, the fans couldn't help but support and encourage him to do more.
Owing to the wrestler's enormous physical stature, social media users and trolls started requesting incredible feats of strength from him. The Great Khali shocked everyone by expressing his gratitude to the individuals who have asked him to perform seemingly impossible activities.
How brands stood strong to silence trolls
Back when the troll army targeted Khali, his Instagram comment section was flooded with strange requests and suggestions disguised as mockery. Khali received some sincere adoration and respect, but many others went too far and bullied him because of his appearance. Khali, though, was also swindled by the trolls in the turn of events. As comments poured in, brands joined Khali to strike against the trolls and answer them in a tone that suited everyone. They used Khali as the face of their campaigns and subtly highlighted the fine but crucial line between humor and bullying.
Companies like realme, Zomato, CashKaro, Beardo, Villain Lifestyle, Hulk Boosters Protein, well-known meme pages, and apps like MemeChat roped in the WWE Hall of Fame personality as their brand ambassador, showering Khali with support in their own unique ways and ultimately strengthened Brand Khali. Additionally, it gave him a chance to speak out against the abnormal troll behavior, where it is strongly advised to draw the line between fun and trolling for fun.
realme
For TWS of realme Buds Q2's #NoiseOffPowerOn campaign, realme teamed up with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) legend and former champion. The campaign #NoiseOffPowerOn generated close to 3 million views, 370K+ likes, and 11K comments in less than 24 hours after it went live on @thegreatkhali on June 20, 2021. It has now crossed 15.5 million views, 1.6 million+ likes and 29K+ comments as of August, 30, 2022.
The #NoiseOffPowerOn campaign showcases the major aspects of the realme Buds Q2 and perfectly encapsulates the brand's positioning. Given that realme is a brand that appeals to young people and millennials, the campaign effectively brought the #NoiseOffPowerOn campaign to the top of the internet by fusing the future product with Khali's daily user comments.
Zomato
In one of the videos from Zomato, the WWE wrestler and Sahiba Bali, the marketing manager, both appeared. The video started with two Zomato drivers arriving at Khali's house and asking why he ordered so little food, only to be followed by four or five additional drivers who delivered the rest of his order.
Khali is a figure of interest for brands, particularly in advertising, and has been called one of the world's strongest men.
CashKaro
The goal of this campaign was to raise awareness around CashKaro while giving voice to Khali.
Zayyan Waseem, Creative & Brand Strategist, CashKaro stated, “This campaign comes under moment marketing, which gives us limited moments to lock in and roll out with the plan if we are to expect a good impact. The process is as simple as Identifying an opportunity (Troll comments on Mr. Khali’s posts), Ideate on what can be done to create conversations (A savage reply from Mr. Khali to the trollers), How can the brand be a part of this conversation in a seamless manner (subtle plugins of the brand with the keyword ‘EXTRA’), Simultaneously we also reach out to the celebrity/influencer for potential costs, And then pitch this to our senior members internally. When everything is locked in, it’s time to roll out!”
Beardo
Based on his charisma, the men's grooming company Beardo roped in Khali to promote the 200 ml giant Charcoal activated face wash.
MemeChat
The application onboarded Khali for a promotion where he is seen encouraging his fans to create fantastic and enjoyable memes using the Memechat app and earn rewards.
Khali has garnered more than five million Instagram followers, and his consistent interaction with his followers over the years has made him a marketer favorite. The content he produced has attracted a lot of attention, whether it was highlighting his personal life or inspiring others to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
How brands curated content around trolls in Khali’s comment section
For those who are unaware, a swarm of internet trolls and supporters of the legendary wrestler deluged Khali's recent posts on his official Instagram profile. Khali's posts had nothing to do with the comments his admirers and followers left on his Instagram profile. It's interesting to see how brands crafted marketing campaigns around the troll comments.
Cadbury Fuse
Fuse India recently used trolls from Khali’s comment section in a post. The campaign gives 'bhaari sawaalon ka Bhaari jawaab'. The idea of having him for the Fuse campaign was 'Bhaari bhookh ko mitaane ke liye Bhaari Fuse, aur uthaane ke liye Bhaari haath lagta hai', thus Khali.
PUBG New State
PUBG New State collaborated with a few comedians and celebs for a campaign which was themed around troll comments seen in the Khali's comment section.
Here are a few more brands endorsed by The Great Khali in recent times
The legendary Khali is a well-known professional WWE wrestler. He has recently expanded on this position by serving as an ambassador for several different brands.
Swiggy
Khali and Swiggy gathered to celebrate their respective birthdays as this year, Khali will turn 50, and Swiggy will turn eight. The Big Birthday Bash was launched by Khali and a Swiggy delivery boy, in a series of ads uploaded to Swiggy's YouTube channel.
Ashish Lingamneni, Head of Brand at Swiggy, said, “As we looked at different ways of creating excitement around our birthday celebrations and promotions, we found that the Great Khali also celebrates his birthday in August and is in fact turning 50 this year. This led us to a fun creative territory of Khali being peeved about Swiggy stealing his birthday month thunder with the Swiggy Big Birthday Bash. Through the lighthearted and organically shot ads, we invite all our customers to be a part of this joyful occasion by availing all exciting offers and deals.”
Licious
Khali is the star of a funny campaign that Licious rolled out to showcase their 'The All You Can Meat Buffet'. The witty campaign offers a hearty perspective on all things amusing and features Khali fully stocked with the delectable treats he will need during the day.
Santosh Hegde, VP – Brands, Licious said, “The Licious All You Can Meat Buffet is a larger-
than-life phenomenon. So, when it came to the perfect representation of the idea behind this
festival, The Great Khali, was our obvious choice. We wanted our customers to wake up to a
campaign that would whet their appetite- literally! Khali does a great job of delivering the impact
with a punch and some more.
Zandu Ultra Power Balm
To bring out the brand USP of a strong balm for strong pain, Zandu Ultra Power Balm roped in Khali as he matched the brand identity of being a strong solution to strong pain.
KFC
KFC created a buzz around the release of its new campaign through several posts by The Great Khali showing him trying on some interesting hobbies. The purpose was to raise curiosity about what is Khali up to. The release of the campaign then revealed that Khali’s new interests were inspired by the KFC Double Down Burger.
Redmi
Three amusing videos featuring the recently released Redmi 10A and Redmi 10 being put through "The Khali" tests are featured in the new campaign, which is celebrating the success of Xiaomi's well-liked Redmi 10 series. Khali tests the durability and strength of these smartphones in several trials and experiments, which are highlighted in the videos.
Of course, those who have witnessed him in the ring during his stint with the WWE might find his internet life to be more appealing. However, the Great Khali is still immensely relevant to the Indian masses. More so, since the frightening wrestler actually isn't that intimidating after all. His frequent Instagram posts attest to his amusing innocence, and his lip-syncing abilities aren't always flawless. Despite this, neither the audience nor the wrestler stopped what they were doing.