Lawyer to some; leader to others. Beacon to some; bugbear to others. He was many things to many people. Apostle of peace and non-violence, and father of the nation, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was also a triumph of branding. As Sarojini Naidu famously said, it took a lot of money to keep Gandhi poor.
On media circus, Tom Tom writes:
“The truth is he wasn’t just some sappy dude who sat around all day smiling. He was a sharp lawyer who had a mind for smart communication. He was non-violent, but not passive. He devastated an empire by taking residence in people’s minds.
“He knew how the media worked and how to get attention. He spread his message by causing peaceful civil disobedience that got talked about in international press and word of mouth. That’s the power of a story worth discussing.
“His famous salt march was done explicitly to get noticed. He made a small batch of salt, which was illegal for him to do under British rule. The salt he made wasn’t worth much, but the press couldn’t help but write about his defiance.”
Was he, all things considered, also the greatest advertising guru of his time, and ours? A man who preceded image consultants, brand managers, public relations?
Read the full article: What Gandhi can teach us about advertising
Photo illustration: courtesy Media Circus
Gandhi certainly knew how to connect to the masses and get them to notice his message. His intuitive use of religious and cultural symbolism was awesome.
If you ask me, Gandhi was the original jackass. This is not meant to sound disrespectful ( although with the comment already made, any case about arguing in defence may be shattered). Jackass is the name of a TV show where a contestant subjects himself to punishment…and survives. Some examples are getting a 5 pound weight thrown at the genitals from a lofty height. Getting pelted by sharp objects. Running towards a wall at full speed, etc.
Now, in his early years of dissent, Gandhi also subjected himelf to unnecessary torture, like getting lathi charged in South Africa, Thrown out of a train, etc. He did all this knowing fully well what the rules were. Hence, Gandhi the original jackass. And again, I mean no disrespect. Salutations to the Father of the Nation.
Interesting thought – but completely disagree if he did it deliberately with those objectives. Narayanmurthy – if he travels economic class – that was his way of saving money – till media picked it up and made a hype. Now the poor fella cant travel business. something similar would have happened with MG.
at least on Churumuri , we know who the local Jackass is ( with no disrespect :) )
What a cheap shot, servant. That the best you got?
vinay,
Your comment must have hurt like ‘a 5 pound weight thrown at the genitals’
Pudi-pudi :)
Vidhudi’s icon: Jackass!
The father of our nation, who strived his best to lead a simple life amid the chaos, could not have been thinking of a personal marketing campaign on his mind. Yes, his salt march and, the salt that he made, was worth zilch, but the symbolic gesture meant everything to the oppressed Indians. It was meant as a defiant gesture that would instill hope and help rally the Indians — not as some idiotic image building marketing excercise.
Get Gandhi off the pedestals and the glare of limelight, he would not have liked it. He is much at home in our hearts and in our good deeds.
NRN is a visionary and one of India’s greats, but Gandhi and him in the same breath ? Nah. Gandhi would not have threatened to move shop if the infrastructure was bad ! Wait a min, the infrastructure was bad then …
No greater man has been produced by India. He knew how not to waste his time. Except in a few cases, he never failed foresee what was coming, even when he knew it was not what he wanted.Therein lies his genius. If his humility and selflessness were entirely real, India today might even be the country he wanted to see created. Perhaps not, given the cupidity and baseness of most of his followers.
None of this really matters now. The name “Gandhi” makes people think of Indira’s dynasty, not of the Mahatma.
Univercities accross world study gandhi as a Managemnet guru.
considering India’s millions of cultures/languages/tradition.. its a mammoth task manage (?) people of India. He is fairly succeded in that. Advertising /marketing is a part of management.
no greater brand ambassador have been produced till now, But gandhiji is the one who promote the actual word advertisement ,I think it drives from dandi march ,non-co-operation movement .