Producers of Jatra, the popular form of folk theatre in Bengal, are now taking a tip or two from their coun­terparts in celluloid — re­plicating the in-film model to generate additional revenue. With all fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) co­mpanies now focusing on rural markets, the new model has come in handy for Jatra performers to ma­ke some extra money.

“In Kolkata alone, there are more than 50 groups/ operas, who perform 100 shows per year on an average. And they not only perform in rural areas and far-flung districts of West Bengal, but in other states such as Jharkhand and those in the north-east, particularly Tripura and Assam. Therefore, these Jatras actually offer a large platform to companies to promote the­ir products and services. And it’s cost-effective, too,” Raj Lakshmi Mohan, an independent marketing consultant dealing in in-film and in-theatre advertisement, told Financial Chro­nicle here.

Jatras could well emerge as an ultra low-cost alternative, as marketing campaigns by FMCG players in electronic media are becoming costly. "For Hindustan Unile­ver, we expect the growth in ad spend in the September quarter to be as high as 40 per cent due to focus on higher ad support...Part of the surprise could be because of whole day blocks carried out by HUL on Zee and Star networks. These blocks would have been at a much higher rate than normal spot rates due to exclusivity of the arrangement. We believe each of these days could have cost us over Rs 150 crore, which implies 6-7 per cent additional spend on just these two blocks," said Bank of America Merrill Lynch FMCG analyst Anuj Bansal in a note. Our channel checks show that the focus categories during this blitz were soaps and hair care, he added.

The new strategy by FMCG companies is paying off well for Jatra producers. Rupanjali Opera has a brand tie-up with Sunlight for its ongoing play, Kothaye Amar Moner Manush? (Where is my soul mate?), Mukta Manjari Opera has got Vivel as its brand partner for its play, Era Shatru (Know Your Enemies), Digvijoy Opera has a similar association with local player K C Pal & Company for shows of Kurukshetrer Sesh Senapati.

“There is not much scope of intelligent in-show placement in Jatra, unlike in-film promos. It has to be simple, candid, loud and clear. The male or female protagonists have to mention the name of the products a number of times within the show,” said Ranjit Chakraborty, manager, Shilpa Lok and Shilpa Mandir Operas, which has a brand association with Boroplus.

If Jatra comes forward, why should other popular forms of entertainment in the rural belt be far behind? FMCG brands’ association with this entertainment medium is, therefore, on the rise.

FMCG major Dabur has been associating itself with the rural pockets of Uttar Predesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh through various initiatives such as beauty pageants and talent hunts. "We are associating Dabur Amla with these kind of events. This not only helps creating awareness about the brand but also increases sales" said a Dabur spokes­person.

The response has been pretty good so far for the company. "We have seen 20 per cent growth in terms of volume because of this" the spokesperson said. The company also associates itself with rural haats and melas to increase its presence in the rural markets.

Godrej Consumer Products limited, another FMCG major, also associates itself with rural melas and puppet shows.

"We associate Godrej No.1 with puppet shows in rural markets of the north. The idea is to build awareness about the brand in these markets," said a GCPL spokesperson.

(With inputs from Priyanka Dasgupta Brahma in Mumbai and Kumar Shankar Roy in Kolkata)