TATA Tea Premium dials up hyperlocal pride by celebrating Odisha’s rich cultural legacy

TATA Tea celebrates Utkala Dibasa by paying homage to the diverse art forms from the state.

Odisha is famous for its diverse handloom traditions like Sambalpuri Bandha of Sambalpur, Bomkai of Ganjam, Dhalapathar of Khordha to Habaspuri of Kalahandi. Thus, on the occasion of Utkala Dibasa (Odisha Day), Tata Tea Premium pays homage to these diverse art forms, renowned the world over through a limited-edition pack collection inspired by the handlooms of Odisha. Nine different handlooms from different corners of Odisha have been tastefully adapted into this exquisite collection for the people of the state.

Odisha as a state is not only renowned for its pristine nature and proud history but also for its long-standing tradition of craftsmanship. This culture of craftsmanship is best reflected in Odisha’s ancient name ‘Utkala’. Etymologically Utkala is known to be a land having an excellent opulence of artists. This rich and cultural artistic heritage is reflected across diverse arts and crafts, dance, and music traditions, and perhaps most vividly in the handlooms of Odisha. 

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To bring alive the story of the handlooms, the brand has also released a film conceived by Mullen Lintas, weaving together a whole 9-yard visual extravaganza narrating the exquisite story of some of the famous handloom weaves of the state. The TVC is musical in nature and has been sung by famous Odia celeb singer Rituraj Mohanty, which takes you through a Visual spectacle and a sing-song ride of local folk art and cultural cues that are intrinsic to the handloom styles. This campaign is further amplified by an on-ground exhibition in Bhubhaneswar on the eve of Odisha Day, to celebrate the weavers who have been instrumental in bringing alive the designs and the packs.

Elaborating on the initiative, Puneet Das, President, Packaged Beverages, India & South Asia, Tata Consumer Products Limited, said, “As part of our continued efforts to strengthen our brand connect with the people of Odisha, we are excited to celebrate the handloom culture of the state through our #UtkalaKiKala campaign on Utkala Dibasa. The array of handloom sarees from Odisha have been an integral part of the state’s cultural fabric. We have been able to bring alive these handloom traditions and capture their magical design in our limited-edition packs. We have further amplified this story beyond our packs into a beautiful film that can be seen by consumers across Odisha. Celebrating the rich culture of Odisha as well as driving this campaign to highlight the magic of these craftsmen, is at the core of our hyperlocal strategy to strengthen the connect with people of Odisha”.   

Arnab Chatterjee, co-founder Tree Design, who had conceived the thought and the pack design said, “To truly do justice to the brief we decided to go to the source of this rich cultural heritage. Traversing across the state of Odisha, we covered close to 1000 kms by road, over a period of 8 days, and located nine local artists who have been practising their specific craft of handloom weaving for generations. Each of the nine artists was tasked to create a special saree for Odisha Day based on their rich and specific ethnic handloom culture. These sarees then became the base for the nine limited edition Odisha Day packs. These nine gems were then used to create a full campaign for Odisha Day ranging from a special edition tea book to outdoor to print to evoke a sense of local pride with the Tata Tea Premium consumers in Odisha”.

Commenting on the genesis of the campaign and the idea, Hari Krishnan, CEO, Mullen Lintas said “Not every day you get to work on a campaign like this. While the brief to the team was to communicate about the 9-handloom inspired limited edition packs, the idea was always to celebrate the pride of Odisha on the occasion of Utkala Dibasa, through one of its popular art forms- its beautiful handlooms. The name of the state itself has ‘kala’ in, so we leveraged it to work in our favour and cracked the campaign #UtkalaKiKala, a celebration of the state and its handloom art. The way the film portrays the stories and inspiration behind each of the handlooms, brought alive through a mix of miniature art and slick animation, encaptivates the viewers while also landing the communication comprehensively.”